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"In his Meditations, Rene Descartes asks, "what am I?" His initial answer is "a man." But he soon discards it: "But what is a man? Shall I say 'a rational animal'?
No: for then I should inquire what an animal is, what rationality is, and in this way one question would lead down the slope to harder ones." Instead of understanding what a man is, Descartes shifts to two new questions: "What is Mind?" and "What is Body?" These questions develop into Descartes's main philosophical preoccupation: the Mind-Body distinction.".
"How can Mind and Body be independent entities, yet joined - essentially so - within a single human being? If Mind and Body are really distinct, are human beings merely a "construction"? On the other hand, if we respect the integrity of humans, are Mind and Body merely aspects of a human being and not subjects in and of themselves?".
"For centuries, philosophers have considered this classic philosophical puzzle. Now, in this compact, engaging, and long-awaited work, UCLA philosopher Joseph Almog closely decodes the French philosopher's argument for distinguishing between the human mind and body while maintaining simultaneously their essential integration in a human being.
He argues that Descartes constructed a solution whereby the trio of Human Mind, Body, and Being are essentially interdependent yet remain each a genuine individual subject.".
"Almog's reading not only steers away from the most popular interpretations of Descartes, but also represents a scholar coming to grips directly with Descartes himself. In doing so, Almog creates a work that Cartesian scholars will value, and that will also prove indispensable to philosophers of language, ontology, and the metaphysics of mind."--BOOK JACKET.
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Showing 4 featured editions. View all 4 editions?
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1
What Am I?: Descartes and the Mind-Body Problem
April 1, 2005, Oxford University Press, USA
in English
0195177193 9780195177190
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2
What am I?: Descartes and the mind-body problem
2002, Oxford University Press
in English
0195146468 9780195146462
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3
What Am I?: Descartes and the Mind-Body Problem
December 27, 2001, Oxford University Press, USA
in English
0195146468 9780195146462
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4
What Am I?: Descartes and the Mind-Body Problem
2001, Oxford University Press, Incorporated
in English
019803346X 9780198033462
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Book Details
First Sentence
"A similar observation about the completeness of the idea of his mind recurs in Descartes's reply to what strikes me as the most penetrating objection made to him, Arnauld's (the fourth) objection."
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- Created April 29, 2008
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August 5, 2010 | Edited by IdentifierBot | added LibraryThing ID |
April 14, 2010 | Edited by Open Library Bot | Linked existing covers to the edition. |
December 14, 2009 | Edited by WorkBot | link works |
April 29, 2008 | Created by an anonymous user | Imported from amazon.com record |