Rivera 1 Jason Rivera PHI 201 Peter Ross 19 October 2011 Short Response #1 Are the mind and

the brain two in the same, or two different things? The controversy between determining if the mind and brain are different or not, has been a question for philosophers. Although the Mind/Brain Identity Theory states that the mind and the brain are identical, dualism claims that there is a nonphysical difference of the two. Many questions are cultivated by these proclamations, however I agree to the dualist points of view. According to Core Questions in Philosophy by Elliot Sober, dualism states that the mind and body are two distinct entities; a persons mind is made of a nonphysical substance (Sober 255). Jody Miller, a survivor of a hemispherectomy, challenges why the mind and brain are separate substances. At the age of 3, suffered from a rare neurological disease called Rasmessens Encephalitis; her only hope for staying alive was a hemispherectomy, a rare surgery to remove half the brain. Eighteen years later, shes in college living the life as any other college student. At the age of 8, Fox News visited her to receive her story. Although some physical side effects are noticed, her mental capabilities are as any other person. Even by only having half her brain, Jody still has her mental abilities in tack. If the Mind/Brain Identity Theory says the brain and mind are the same, then why would Jody still be the same girl she was before the surgery? Also, people all have brains, shaped the same way, but we all have different personalities. These

Rivera 2 would only mean that we have a different mind; this mind of ours cannot be our brain, because we are all unique in our own way. If the brain and mind were the same, we would share the same personalities as others. However, we are all diverse and with a mind unlike one another. Sober points out, in an additional perspective, that through the mind/brain identity theory, the mind and brain share the same psychological and physical properties. Also, he explains the meaning of materialism, that all objects have a physical substance. Because of this statement, then the mind and brain are two in the same things. In addition, there is a connection between the brain and the mind. If we have a sense of touch, the brain connects this feeling to the mind; the mind would know that it is feeling a certain object. Since the brain is what tells a body what it feels, then the mind and the brain are joined together. If the brain has a part that function thoughts, memories, and senses, then it is, essentially, the mind. Even though mind/brain identity theorist believe the mind and body are the same, I concur with the dualist that they are separate. If people in the world are able to experience a hemispherectomy, and still be the same person as there were before, ultimately means that the brain and the mind are two different substances. Theorist can assume they are together because there are parts of the brain that play important roles of how the mind functions, however the mind does not change due to alters in the brain. The mind and the brain are proven through these examples that they are not connected, but apart through physical and nonphysical substances. There will always be ways which people are challenging this idea. Believing in whether or not it is true depends on a person ethics, morals, and free will.