MEDIEVAL THOUGHT

Question 1

SAINT AUGUSTINE was a rationalist, he strongly believed against?

Answer 1

against solipsism
(extreme idealism, cannot prove anything but your own mind exists)

Question 2

What were the 2 key works of AVICENNA?
Islamic Golden Age

Answer 2

The Book of Healing is a scientific encyclopedia (covering logic, psychology, the natural sciences, arithmetic, astronomy and music)

The Canon of Medicine
historical medicine books

Question 3

How did Thomas Aquinas’s view on the soul diverged from the Greeks?

Answer 3

He saw that mind and body are inextricably linked, whereas the Greeks saw the body as a cage for the soul.

Question 4

Aquinas identified four broad faculties:

Answer 4

Vegetative soul

Sensitive soul

Rational soul

Appetitive powers: divided into
Sensitive
Rational

Question 5

Who argued that the Rational Soul is subdivided into an Active and Passive intellect?

Answer 5

Thomas Aquinas

Question 6

What 3 main concepts were introduced during the 1600’s?

Answer 6

Cartesian dualism
Alternative dualisms
Monism

Question 7

What 2 examples did Descartes give as to why we should be sceptical of the world around us?

Answer 7

1 Descartes’ Dream:
We can doubt sense evidence
as its possible you could be dreaming

2 Descartes’ Demon:
We could be fooled by an evil demon

Question 8

Name 3 forms of Dualism:

Answer 8

Epiphenomenalism
Occasionalism
Parallelism

Question 9

What does Epiphenomenalism state about the mind?

Answer 9

Brain states causes mind states but they do not cause anything themselves

eg- Physical can cause mental issues but not the other way around

Question 10

What does Occasionalism state about the Illusion of causality?

Answer 10

God causes 1 event first
(walking into a lampost)

Then God causes another event
(the pain you feel from the lampost)

But there is no necessary connection between the 2

Question 11

What does Parallelism state about interactions?

Answer 11

God doesn’t interact at each step

Interactions are parallel meaning that they occur separately, without causal interference

Giving the appearance of an interaction

Question 12

Name the 3 types relating to Monism:

Answer 12

Idealism
Materialism
Neutral Monism

Question 13

Idealism

Answer 13

Only the mental stuff exists

Question 14

Materialism

Answer 14

Only the physical stuff exists
The argument that the mind IS matter

Question 15

Neutral Monism

Answer 15

Only stuff exists
Has both physical and mental aspects

Question 16

Double Aspectism lies between M and D?

Answer 16

Monism and Dualism
substance has mental and physical aspects

1- if we perceive through our senses- matter
2- if we look within ourselves- thought

Pan-psychicism