Summary Property dualism (a* alevel philosophy)

PROPERTY DUALISM

“There are at least some mental
properties that are neither reducible to
nor supervenient upon physical
properties.”




Notes:

, There is one kind of substance, physical substance
- Two different properties, mental & physical
- Mental properties distinct, new kind of property in the world
- Physics misses something fundamental = consciousness

Physical substances possess mental properties, BUT mental properties are not reducible/
supervene upon physical properties
- Mental properties cannot be reduced to physical
- Change in mental = change in physical (Mental supervene on physical)

Issues of property dualism taken as challenges to physicalism

Physicalism = everything is physical or supervenes on the physical (all facts are physical
facts)

Property = attribute/characteristic of an object
- Can be investigated by physics e.g colour/size (physical properties)
- Mental properties = mental states/beliefs/mental events/having thought or
feeling pain

Property dualism vs physicalism
- Dualism believes = complete description of physical universe would not be a
complete description of the entire universe
 Facts about world that CANNOT be reduced to physical facts
 Mental properties = not reducible to physical properties
- Property dualists = qualia is non-physical, subjective qualities of experience
differing from person to person
 Knowledge of qualia = phenomenal knowledge (knowledge what it is
like to have a certain experience)
 E.g the redness of a tomato
 E.g pain is a mental state not a substance