Philosophy 222: Knowledge Mind and Language

Handbook

Philosophy 222: Knowledge, Mind & Language

Course tutor: Vernon Pratt

Terms taught: Michaelmas and Lent

Available 2002-3

Prerequisite: Part 1 Philosophy

Aims

The idea that the brain might be a computer has generated a conception of the human being which is stimulating a great deal of exciting work in a number of fields. In this module we consider perspectives on the nature of knowledge, language and 'the mind' which this work engages with. The aim is to introduce you to the leading positions and engage you in the argumentation involved. All are raised and discussed in the Reader for the course Mind & Cognition, ed. Lycan. The main questions at issue are:

Does ‘consciousness’ represent a problem for the computer model of the brain?

What is ‘the identity hypothesis’? What difficulties are there with it?

What is the causal hypothesis? What difficulties are there with it?

What is the ‘functionalist’ approach to understanding the brain and mind? What difficulties are there with it?

What is the ‘behaviourist’ approach to understanding the brain and mind? What difficulties are there with it?

What is the ‘eliminativist’ approach to understanding the brain and mind? What difficulties are there with it?

What is ‘belief’ and ‘true belief’ (‘knowledge’), and what is ‘desiring’ or ‘wanting’ according to the computer model of the brain? What are the problems for this account?

What is the ‘instrumentalist’ approach to understanding the attribution of beliefs and desires to people?

Can physical states ‘point’ on their own?

Must we think of there being a language in which thought is conducted?

What is the nature of language according to the computer model of the brain? What are the problems for this account?

What is the status of our everyday explanations of what we do, according to the computer model of the brain? What are the problems for this account?

What are the prospects for the computer model of the brain?

Background

The second section of Philosophy 100 has introduced you to the Philosophy of Mind. You could usefully reprise your notes on EB’s discussions of the topics raised then. EB’s suggestions for further reading are also very useful!

Teaching and learning:

One plenary session a week (usually about 60 people).

One seminar a week (10-15 in each group).

Two assignments.

Assessment by coursework and exam (or, depending on how many dissertations you are doing altogether, by coursework and dissertation.)

Preliminary Reading

I base this half of the course on a book of readings:

W.G. Lycan: Mind and Cognition, Blackwell, Oxford 1990.

Becoming familiar with this (Lycan's Introduction, perhaps some of his linking commentaries) would be excellent preparation. Probably more inspirational though would be

Daniel Dennett: Consciousness Explained, Boston, Little, Brown & Co., 1991.

An easy, absorbing, stimulating read would be one of Oliver Sacks' books, e.g. An Anthropologist on Mars, London, 1995, Picador.

Reader and Textbook

Author/Title	Publisher	ISBN
LYCAN, William G. Mind And Cognition : A Reader.	Oxford : Blackwell, 1990	0-631-16763-3
HEIL, John: Philosophy of Mind	Routledge, 1998	0-415-13060-3

Topics And Reading Week By Week

The Reader: Mind & Cognition, 2^nd Edition, Edited By William G. Lycan, Oxford, 1999, Blackwell. Please note: The 1^st edition has a significantly different selection of papers and so is not a good substitute. The numbers in brackets below refer to the section in the reader which contains the piece. Some use is made of the Part I Reader.

Term 1

1. Consciousness 1

Frank Jackson: 'Epiphenomenal Qualia' (18)

2. Consciousness 2

Consciousness Continued; Introduction To The Course; Overview.

Reprise Of Frank Jackson's Article, Above; Thomas Nagel 'What Is It Like To Be A Bat?' from the Part I Reader - Introduction To Philosophy, Ed. White; David Armstrong, 'The Central State Theory', from the Part I Reader Introduction To Philosophy, Ed. White..

3. Consciousness 3

U.T. Place: 'Is Consciousness A Brain Process?' (1)

4. Consciousness 4

Lycan's Introduction to Part VI

David Lewis: 'What Experience Teaches' (19)

5. Functionalism 1

Lycan's Introduction to Part I.

6. Functionalism 2

Jerry A. Fodor: 'The Appeal to Tacit Knowledge in Psychological explanation' (Excerpt) (4)

7. Functionalism 3

William G. Lycan: 'The Continuity of Levels in Nature' (4)

8. Instrumentalism 1

Lycan's Introduction to Part II.

9. Instrumentalism 2

D.C. Dennett: 'True Believers: The Intentionalist Strategy And How It Works.' (5)

10. Language 1

John Searle: Can Computers Think? (The Part I Reader - Introduction To Philosophy, Ed. White, pp 197-203)

11. Language 2

Jerry A. Fodor: 'A Theory of Content' (10)

12. Langauge 3

Paul M. Churchland & Patricia Smith Churchland: 'Stalking The Wild Epistemic Engine'. (9)

13. The 'Language Of Thought' Hypothesis

J.A. Fodor: 'Why There Still Has To Be A Language Of Thought' (8)

14. Intentionality 1

Lycan's Introduction to Part IV.

15. Intentionality 2

Jerry. A. Fodor: 'A Theory of Content' (10)

16. Connectionism 1

Lycan's Introduction

William Bechtel: 'The Case for Connectionism' (7)

17. Connectionism 2

Patricia Smith Churchland and Terence Sejnowski: 'Neural Representation and Neural Computation' (7)

18. Eliminativism

Lycan's Introduction to Part III

Paul Churchland: 'Eliminative Materialism and the Propositional Attitudes' (6)

19. The status of Folk Psychology 1

Jaegwon Kim: 'Mental causation' (14)

20. The status of Folk Psychology 2

Donald Davidson: 'Knowing One's Own Mind' (16)

Learning resources

READER

Because of the size of the group the course is designed around a set of articles which are collected into a Reader. This is the main resource for the course and you are expected to have very frequent access to it. You are recommended to buy it (it is chosen with an eye on cost. In general, a different article is set as the reading for each week (on the topic of the lecture and seminar) (see Reading and Topics Week by Week), and encouraged to explore related articles in this volume, especially for your written work. The assignments and assessment are designed so that it is possible for a clever person to achieve first class marks even though they restrict their reading to the articles available in the Reader.

LIBRARY

In the Library there are a number of books that could help you if you are having difficulty with the Reader - covering much the same ground but from different (but introductory) perspectives. The bookshop has been asked to stock these.

The Library also has a range of introductory texts, and endeavours to maintain holdings (in single copies) of the major monograph contributions to the field. These are not listed systematically for course participants - deliberately so that they have the occasion to develop their independent library-use skills.

Holdings of the main research journals in the field are also maintained by the Library. You are encouraged to explore these, and are pointed to particular items from time to time.

The assessment design is such that if you make good use of the materials beyond the Reader you receive credit (with the implication that a wider reading base may compensate for or supplement other qualities of an essay - see Assessment Policy)

WEB SITE

There are web pages for the course. Here are kept:-

· All policy documents relating to the course (e.g. this one)

· Summary notes of each lecture

· Texts of overheads used in each lecture

· Full texts of each lecture

· A select number of links to relevant web resources, especially papers by key people in the field.

· A set of summary pages designed as a revision aid: the 222 Supercrib.

· Links to generic BA philosophy programme documents

There are broadcast materials that are highly relevant from time to time, and I try and draw attention to these.

DEPARTMENTAL SEMINAR

Contributions to the departmental seminar are sometimes relevant. I try and keep you posted.

PHILOSOPHY SOCIETY

Discussions are often relevant. This group, when enjoying onticity, has an invaluable role in offering informal course related 'support' discussion. Its activities are announced in classes.

Assignments

Synopsis

To go on the title page of your essay you are asked to construct a 'synopsis'. This is a summary of the points made in the essay, reflecting its structure as well as its content. You should construct it by going through your draft a paragraph at a time and writing a single-sentence summary of each paragraph in turn. Preparing a synopsis helps you refine your sense of structure, and gives you practice in helping your reader follow your presentation.

Rubrics

Some general notes about essays are in the Part II Handbook.

You should document your references systematically. If you have problems avoiding an inappropriate degree of dependence on your reading - which in a fully developed form becomes plagiarism - let's discuss.

Deadlines

By the end of Week 10 in each term please. Length guideline: 3,000 words.

Example of what I mean by a 'synopsis'

from John Ruskin's Modern Painters

I. OF GENERAL PRINCIPLES.

SECTION I.

OF THE NATURE OF THE IDEAS CONVEYABLE BY ART.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTORY.

§ 1. Public opinion no criterion of excellence, except after long periods of time

§ 2. And therefore obstinate when once formed.

§ 3. The author's reasons for opposing it in particular instances.

§ 4. But only on points capable of demonstration.

§ 5. The author's partiality to modern works excusable.

CHAPTER II DEFINITION OF GREATNESS IN ART.

§ 1. Distinction between the painter's intellectual power and technical knowledge.

§ 2. Painting, as such, is nothing more than language.

§ 3. "Painter," a term corresponding to "versifier".

§ 4. Example in a painting of E. Landseer's.

§ 5. Difficulty of fixing an exact limit between language and thought.

§ 6. Distinction between decorative and expressive language.

§ 7. Instance in the Dutch and early Italian schools.

§ 8. Yet there are certain ideas belonging to language itself.

§ 9. The definition.

Some Sources for Further Reading

ALLEN, Colin, Species of mind : the philosophy and biology of cognitive ethology / Colin Allen and Marc Bekoff.	MIT Press, 1997.
AUDI, Robert, Epistemology : a contemporary introduction to the theory of knowledge.	Routledge, 1998.
DENNETT, Daniel. Consciousness Explained.	Penguin, 1992
CHALMERS, David J. The Conscious Mind.	OUP, 1996
DANCY, Jonathan and Sosa, Ernest , eds., A companion to Epistemology.	Blackwell, 1992
GUTTENPLAN, S. A Companion to the Philosophy of Mind.	Blackwell, 1994
MOSER, Paul K. The Theory of Knowledge.	OUP, 1998
STICH, S.P. Mental Representation.	Blackwell, 1994
ARMSTRONG, David Malet. A materialist theory of the mind.	Routledge & K.Paul, 1968
CHURCHLAND, Paul M. Matter and consciousness : a contemporary introduction to the philosophy of mind.	Cambridge, Mass. : M.I.T. Press, 1988
FODOR, Jerry A., In critical condition : polemical essays on cognitive science and the philosophy of mind / Jerry Fodor.	MIT Press, 1998.
GUTTENPLAN, Samuel, Mind's landscape : an introduction to the philosophy of mind.	Blackwell, 2000.
HOFSTADTER, Douglas R. Godel, Escher, Bach : an eternal golden braid / Douglas R. Hofstadter.	Hassocks : Harvester Press, 1979
HOFSTADTER, Douglas R. The mind's I : fantasies and reflections on self and soul / composed ... by Douglas R. Hofstadter and Daniel C. Dennett.	Penguin, 1982
KIRK, R. Raw Feeling.	Clarendon, 1994
MCCULLOCH, G. The Mind and its World.	Routledge, 1995.
MOORE, A.W. ed. Meaning & Reference.	OUP, 1993
MORTON, Adam, A guide through the theory of knowledge.	Blackwell, 1997.
PITCHER, George, ed. Truth	Prentice-Hall, 1964.
RUSSELL, Bertrand. The Problems of Philosophy.	OUP,1912
RYLE, Gilbert. The concept of mind.	Hutchinson's Univ. Library, 1949
SEARLE, John R. The rediscovery of the mind.	Cambridge, Mass. : M.I.T. Press, 1992

Policy on Assessment

Assessment for this course is based on two assignments, one in each of the two terms, and a 3 hour closed-book exam.

I set out the different skills and abilities the course is designed to develop for you in the table. Alongside I explain how these are assessed through assignments and exams.

How your developing skills are assessed

	Year 1	Years 2 & 3	MA
lucidity	present simple philosophical ideas and arguments clearly	avoid confusion in the presentation of more difficult ideas and more complex argumentation	present most ideas and argumentation in the relevant literature without substantial obscurity
structure of presentation	present a limited number of related arguments or considerations in a clearly structured way	synthesise a wider range of ideas and arguments into a single coherently structured written presentation	marshal variously sourced arguments and considerations into a sustained and well-organised statement
grasp of problem	the beginnings of a grasp of some dimensions of the philosophical problems at issue	grasp at least some of the main dimensions of a philosophical problem at issue in such a way as to support the beginnings of critical independent thought about it	grasp the main dimensions of the problem at issue at such a level as to lend authority to the author's independent critique
critical awareness	show an awareness that claims are open to test and evaluation	maintain throughout a limited study the sense that claims are open to test and evaluation	maintain throughout a substantial study an independent voice
coherence of argumentation	work with the distinction between validity and invalidity in argument	work with a sharp sense of validity and invalidity in relation to complex lines of argumentation	present extended critiques or lines of argumentation which avoid logical confusion.
evidence of study	show the benefits in one's writing of careful listening, reading and thought	draw intelligently in one's own reading, writing and thinking on a range of challenging contributions made by others	write with a knowledge and grasp of the main contributions made by others to one's topic
knowledge and grasp of relevant literature	read and have a basic understanding of at least eight pieces of philosophical literature	read and have a good understanding of at least some aspects of some challenging contributions to the problem at issue	know and understand the main contributions to the problem at issue and develop some sense of overview
sense of relevance	know the difference between points that are straightforwardly relevant and points which are irrelevant to a particular argument or issue	work with a sense of relevance in relation to a limited project as a whole, both in choice of reading and in presentation of argumentation	work independently with a well-developed sense of relevance in relation to an extended project

Assignments

The primary point of writing essays is to help you develop your knowledge and understanding of philosophy, not to test them. But they do play a central role in assessment on this course nonetheless.

They ask you to engage in a sustained bit of philosophising.

The first gives you a structure: it asks you to give a careful exposition of a position/line of argument and to follow this with a critique. The second does not specify a structure but invites you to address a problem, creating a structure which best suits it and your approach.

In each case you are asked to construct a 'synopsis' of the essay (to go on the title page). This helps you refine your sense of structure, and gives you practice in helping your reader follow your presentation.

The length guideline for each essay is 3000 words.

Exam

We use exams to test for much the same capacities as are shown in essays, though with different emphases - see table above, How your developing skills are assessed. They test also your capacity to work under a very special kind of pressure (!). The University insists on your taking a minimum number of exams in your total assessment profile in part because they are thought to act as a check against plagiarism.

A function of an exam, as we use it in this course, is to test for 'coverage'. It tests, among other things, the breadth of your knowledge of the subject. It does this by setting questions (12 in all) which range across the whole course, by requiring you to answer three questions, and by requiring you to choose those questions so as to display knowledge of at least three of the major philosophers covered by the course. This strategy clearly allows a good deal of latitude. It is designed so that you can choose within limits to specialise by, say, ignoring a handful of topics that do not attract you. On the other hand you can only expect to fail if you 'specialise' too much.

Across all your undergraduate programme as a whole, you are meant to develop a range of knowledge, some of it on restricted topics but deep-going and some of it shallower but relating to a wider sweep. If you are using this course to develop breadth, you should opt for the exam. If you are getting breadth elsewhere, as it were, you should consider writing a dissertation in lieu of an exam. (The University rules that you can be assessed via dissertations in up to four of your 16 units of assessment.)

If you opt for the dissertation you will not be assessed for 'coverage'.

Criteria for the award of marks on an essay, dissertation or exam answer.

Class 2 Division 1

There is

clarity of thought and expression

ability to marshal arguments into a sustained and well-organised statement

a good grasp of the philosophical problem being addressed

critical awareness

a tight sense of relevance

and normally

knowledge and understanding of relevant literature.

Particular strength under one of these heads is seen as compensating for weakness under another.

First

The work meets the criteria for a 2/1 and in addition shows at least some of:

exceptional lucidity of argument

exceptional strength of structure

exceptional mastery of problem being addressed

a thorough and critical familiarity with challenging literature

an original approach

a creative line of argument

Marks within this class may vary reflecting

a capacity to develop arguments beyond those in the relevant literature

depth and sophistication of the argument

critical acumen

Class 2 Division 2

the majority of the text is clear enough to be understood

the answer has a structure

a basic grasp of the question is demonstrated

there is

critical awareness

some coherent argumentation

evidence of serious study

a sense of relevance is exercised

and normally

some knowledge is shown of relevant literature.

distinguished from a 2/1 therefore by

lower level of coherence

lower level of critical awareness

and normally

lower level of knowledge and understanding of relevant literature.

THIRD

the majority of the text is clear enough to be understood

there is

a degree of structure

some grasp of the question is demonstrated

some attempt at argument is made

some evidence of serious study

some sense of relevance

and normally

some knowledge of relevant literature

Particular strength under one of these heads is seen as compensating for weakness under another.

Thus distinguished from 2/2 by some of

limited knowledge of relevant material

limited powers of organisation of material

absence of critical discussion

lack of clarity

lack of relevance

PASS

The work shows

some clear text

some evidence of study

some evidence of an attempt to provide a relevant answer

and

some attempt at argument

So distinguished from 3rd by

relative weakness in the features listed and

lack of structure

FAIL

Work that fails to meet the criteria for a Pass.

The work will thus be characterised by all of:

inadequate or no knowledge of relevant material

no critical discussion

little or no structured argument

endemic lack of clarity

complete irrelevance

NOTES

Every effort will be made to construe the work as relevant to the question set.

These criteria only come into play when the work is accepted as the student's own.

GLOSSARY

'critical', as in 'critical argument':

argument that shows awareness that claims are open to test and evaluation

'critical awareness':

awareness that claims are open to test and evaluation.

'material':

arguments and discussion on the topic derived from books or independent thought.

222 Knowledge, Mind and Language 1

Specimen Exam

Time Allowed. Three Hours

Answer three questions. You should avoid drawing upon substantially the same subject-matter to answer more than one question.

1. "No amount of physical information about a person logically entails that he or she is conscious or 'feels' something or is 'aware'." Is this true?

2. "When we explain someone's behaviour in terms of belief and desires we are not invoking internal states." Explain and evaluate this claim.

3. What does Dennett mean by an 'intentional system'? Is this notion helpful?

4. What is 'functionalism' as a theory of the relationship between brain and mentality? Does it face difficulties?

5. 'In some manner, devolving from Evolution's blind trials and blunders, densely crowded packets of excitable cells inevitably come to represent the world.' P. M. and P. Churchland. Explain what this means and its significance.

6. 'Considering the progress and prospects of AI can be a peculiarly concrete and powerful way of thinking about our own spiritual nature.' (John Haugeland) Discuss.

7. Explain what is meant by saying that a computer is limited to what can be done by manipulating representations. How serious a limitation is this?

8. How do you think you acquired your first language?

9. Assess the merits of thinking of a language as train of wagons carrying a load of meaning.

10. Is there a physicalist alternative to thinking of the brain as a von Neumann computer?

11. .What is 'folk psychology'? Is it a theory?

12. Are 'mental images' propositional?

________________________________

Philosophy 222: Knowledge Mind and Language

Handbook

Philosophy 222: Knowledge, Mind & Language

Course tutor: Vernon Pratt

Terms taught: Michaelmas and Lent

Available 2002-3

Prerequisite: Part 1 Philosophy

Aims

Background

Teaching and learning:

Preliminary Reading

Reader and Textbook

Topics And Reading Week By Week

Term 1

1. Consciousness 1

Frank Jackson: 'Epiphenomenal Qualia' (18)

Learning resources

Assignments

Suggested Topics

Synopsis

Rubrics

Deadlines

Example of what I mean by a 'synopsis'

from John Ruskin's Modern Painters

Some Sources for Further Reading

How your developing skills are assessed

Assignments

Exam

Criteria for the award of marks on an essay, dissertation or exam answer.

Class 2 Division 1

First

Class 2 Division 2

THIRD

PASS

FAIL

GLOSSARY