McGinn, The Character of Mind. An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind.pdf

THE CHARACTER OF MIND

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THE CHARACTER OF MIND

An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind

COLIN McGINN

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

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OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

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First published in hardback and paperback 1996

Reprinted in paperback 1998, 1999

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

Data available

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

McGinn, Colin, 1950-.

The character of mind: an introduction to the philosophy

of mind / Colin McGinn.--[New ed.]

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Psychology--Philosophy. I. Title.

BF38.M39 1997 128'.2--dc20 96-35172

ISBN 0-19-875209-1

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ISBN 0-19-875208-3 (Pbk)

Typeset in Dante MT

Printed in Great Britain

on acid-free paper by

Biddles Ltd,

Guildford and King's Lynn

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Preface to the First Edition

This book is intended as an introduction to the philosophy of mind, suitable for the

general reader and beginning student. I have accordingly avoided the use of

technical terms, except those whose meaning I explain as they are introduced; a

dictionary should suffice for other unfamiliar words. I have not, however, sought to

protect the reader from the difficulties of the subject, and there are parts of each

chapter that are likely to prove taxing to the tyro; but my hope is that these will yield

to concentrated attentaon. On many vexed issues I have written with a boldness and

absence of qualification I might not allow myself elsewhere; my aim has been to give

the reader something definite and stimulating to think about, rather than to present a

cautious and disinterested survey of the state of the subject. But while I have tried to

say something positive about the topics with which the book deals, I have made a

point of accentuating the problems each topic raises; the resulting inconclusiveness

is, I think, to be preferred to facile solutions or (even worse) refusals to acknowledge

the difficulties.

The book contains neither the names of particular authors nor footnotes crediting the

ideas discussed to their originators. I must emphasise that this is not to be taken as

an indication that the views discussed have no identifiable source, still less that their

source is myself. On the contrary, every page of the book shows the influence of

other writers, often in the most direct way possible; I claim no especial originality for

the ideas put forward, though I dare say my treatment of them has sometimes altered

their original form. My excuse for this manner of composition is that to have duly cited

particular authors would have greatly impeded and complicated the presentation of

the material discussed, unsuiting the book for its introductory purpose. The selective

bibliographies for each chapter, to be found at the end of the book, record the

sources of the views dealt with, in so far as I can trace them; but it seems in order to

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acknowledge the main influences on each chapter here, if only in a general way.

These are as follows: Chapter 2, Davidson, Nagel, Kripke, Putnam; Chapter 4,

Russell; Chapter 6, Davidson, Fodor,

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Geach; Chapter 8, Davidson and especially O'Shaughnessy; Chapter 9, Nagel, Parfit,

Shoemaker; Epilogue, Dummett. I would also like to thank Anita Avramides for helpful

critical comments and Katherine Backhouse for exemplary typing.

12 August 1981

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Preface to the Second Edition

It is now fifteen years since the first edition of The Character of Mind was written. At

that time the philosophy of mind was beginning its ascent, having wrested primacy

from the philosophy of language. Since then it has remained an active and vital area

of philosophical interest. Quite a bit has happened in the interim, though I think it

would be true to say that the fundamental geography has not altered much. Some

new topics have come to prominence, but earlier perspectives have not been

superseded. In preparing this new edition I have therefore not seen fit to rewrite the

original chapters; instead I have added three completely new chapters that record

what seem to me the major developments in the field since the book was written. This

seemed the most sensible procedure for a number of reasons: there is nothing

significant in the original text that I would like to withdraw; it is in general a mistake to

tamper with an earlier piece of finished writing; the new material is more naturally

viewed as supplemental rather than revolutionary. I hope that the new edition will

preserve the merits of the original, such as they are, while sounding some fresh

themes. The history of philosophy must never be forgotten, but equally philosophy

should never stagnate. The new chapters are aptly seen as commentaries of a sort

on the older chapters, taking further some of the ideas already in play.

This was my first book, written quickly and in some heat. I have since done quite a bit

of work in the philosophy of mind, and I have not hesitated to reflect this in the

supplemental chapters. These chapters may be viewed by some as idiosyncratic, but

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