The Zombie Argument and Its Implications for Naturalism

Date

2014-04-30

Authors

Averitt, Autumn S.

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Worldwide access

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Abstract

In the discipline of philosophy today, the nature of consciousness is an extremely popular topic. Additionally, there is a general consensus on the truth of naturalism. This thesis investigates whether a naturalist conception of consciousness is tenable. The zombie argument against the naturalist program is very striking, as it clearly delineates the apparent differences between the phenomenal and psychological concepts of the mind. This thesis explores the naturalist program and the nature of consciousness. It then outlines the zombie argument and evaluates naturalist responses to the argument. It concludes that the strongest naturalist response still falls short of defeating the zombie argument. Naturalism therefore fails to adequately account for consciousness.

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Keywords

Philosophy of Mind., Consciousness., The Zombie Argument., Naturalism.

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