Dualism (Identity)

by dhw, Wednesday, May 13, 2020, 12:53 (1654 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: You simply refuse to pinpoint what the soul (if it exists) uses the brain FOR! Once again, do you or do you not agree that the soul does the thinking, and uses the information provided by the brain to initiate concepts, and uses the brain to implement them (= develop, design, produce and/or express them)?

DAVID: I've pinpointed over and over. The soul receives info from the brain's sensory input sources, uses the info to think by using the brains thinking networks and develops new designs and concepts by using those same networks. What don't you understand about my dualism theory that I haven't repeated before? In life the soul must use the brain's neuronal networks to receive info and think!!!

dhw: And there you go again with “the brain’s thinking networks”, which you then try to gloss over by leaving out “thinking”.

DAVID: I don't understand your confusion. In my dualism in life the soul must use the brain's thinking/conceptual networks in the frontal and prefrontal cortex to originate thoughts.

dhw: Here is yesterday’s response to “thinking networks”, which you left out: “So now you are saying the soul uses the brain’s thoughts to do its thinking! Or maybe the brain has a thinking network but it doesn’t think? Or the soul can’t think unless the brain thinks first? I’m sorry, I haven’t a clue what role your brain’s thinking networks can play in your concept of dualism.”

DAVID: More confusion. The brain never thinks by itself without the soul/essence actually doing it by use of the brain's neuronal networks.

Why do you keep adding to the confusion with these nebulous constructions? “Never thinks without…suggests that it only thinks with…So it only thinks if the soul actually thinks. This is just as confusing as the “thinking networks” which don’t think! Let’s try once more: The dualist’s soul does the thinking and uses the brain – but this is what I keep trying to pin down: WHAT does the soul use the brain’s neuronal networks for (and why can’t you just say “brain”)?

DAVID: I've edited your above statement … to show you where you make me uncomfortable:

dhw: You clearly agree now with the uses I have listed, so all you’ve added is “having to”. Fine. So I agree that it HAS to use the brain in life – a) for information, and b) to give material expression to its thoughts and concepts. Now that you have discarded the materialist concept of the brain’s “THINKING network”, I can’t see any disagreement between us.

DAVID: The brain has networks that are specifically used for thinking up concepts. I simple called those 'thinking networks' to name them, not to imply they think by themselves. You interpret what I write in a strange overly literal way.

You have now agreed that the dualist’s soul uses the brain in the ways described and bolded above. The dualist’s brain does not think. So just drop the highly ambiguous term “thinking networks”, and we shall be in complete agreement. The implications are best left to the “brain expansion” thread, and this one can be closed unless you actually disagree with my summary of the way the soul uses the brain.