Q&A: Emergence in the Dualist View
Emergence in the Dualist View
Question
Hello Michi. Several times you compared the body and soul to a person and a computer. The soul experiences through the body just as a person uses a computer through the computer.
This analogy can be understood when we are talking about passive processing by the soul (such as experience). But when we are talking about action by the soul through the body, the analogy becomes problematic. A person can act on the computer because he is a physical body that obeys the laws of physics; he can stretch out his hand and press the power button. But the soul is not a physical body. It seems strange to assume that the interface between the soul and the body takes place in some specific electron. It would seem more reasonable that the interface between body and soul is on something more holistic. And if so, even according to the dualist approach we would have to assume strong emergence that produces something in the brain that turns it into one unified objective entity. Once we have assumed emergence, isn’t it unnecessary to also assume the existence of the soul?
Answer
I have no translation from Chinese.
Discussion on Answer
Indeed.
Thanks for the translation from Chinese.
He answered me about this here (at the end of the thread):
https://mikyab.net/%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%AA/%d7%91%d7%a2%d7%99%d7%99%d7%aa-%d7%94%d7%93%d7%95%d7%90%d7%9c%d7%99%d7%96%d7%9d/
I don’t think he answered.
If we don’t bring in emergence, then all we have are the elementary particles of matter. It’s very hard to think of an influence of spirit on such a specific part of matter. How does the spirit affect my body and not another body if all there is is atoms? What’s the difference between them?
(By the way, Michi also once argued that Descartes was wrong to see the spirit’s influence as operating through the pineal gland. In my opinion that’s only because it’s hard to think of influence in such a specific area.)
It’s much more convenient to think of influence through the brain’s overall structure. And to say that there is something objective in the system that is not in its parts—that is emergence….
He’s arguing that dualism also involves an assumption of emergence, because it has no sufficient explanation for how something spiritual interacts with something physical
and if so, we should just prefer materialism and be done with it.