Explain the position of Dualism and physicalism Essay

Explain the position of Dualism and physicalism - Essay Example This philosophical thought has been applied for instance in the mind-body relation to claim that a human being is a physical system with the central nervous system and brain without a mind or soul (Crumley 5). For instance, physicalists postulate that the mind or soul is not an immaterial substance but occurs in physical form that is consisted of cells at one level which can be broken down further into atoms at their smallest level. This makes the mind and the brain to be same substance in an outlay where the mind is a consequence of neural connections. This positioning of the mind and the brain based on the assumptions make in physicalism means that damage to the brain translates to the same damage in the mind. This is true for example in the case of the brain which contains multiple elongated cells referred to as neurons whose function is to carry specific impulses. Contacts between neurons take place through points of contact named synapses. A specific neuron in the human nervous system is the C-fibers whose function is to supply the skin with nerves and transmit pain impulses. According to Physicalist, when a person experiences an occasion of pain or occurrence of a thought these are believed to be physical events related to C-fibers transmitting or certain electrical and chemical events taking place in the brain and central nervous system (Crumley 64). Apart from the assumption that the mind and brain are the same, another condition of physicalism is based on the belief that the physical world is causally closed. The thesis of causal closure fundamentally argues that any physical event must equally have a physical cause. This assumption by the Physicalists means that for every occurrence in world, there must be an explanation on the basis of causal interactions occurring at the physical level. Therefore, this worldview is