On the Philosophy of Mind

With questions on such topics as "Can you know that other people see red the way you do?" "How is it that you are the same person throughout your life, even though the cells of your body are continually changing?" and "Is it possible to survive one's bodily death?," this book aims to inspire students to work out solutions to fundamental philosophical problems for themselves. Animated by the hope that with prior opinions about a topic students will have a much easier time delving into the literature in this field, ON THE PHILOSOPHY OF MIND is filled with thought experiments as well as more concrete philosophical problems that arise in actual experiments in neuroscience and psychiatry. Not assuming any background in philosophy, the book is accessible to beginning students, but simultaneously, Montero's unique approach will prove thought provoking for students with prior background in the subject too. THE WADSWORTH PHILOSOPHICAL TOPICS SERIES presents readers with concise, timely, and insightful introductions to a variety of traditional and contemporary philosophical subjects. With this series, students of philosophy will be able to discover the richness of philosophical inquiry across a wide array of concepts, including hallmark philosophical themes and themes typically underrepresented in mainstream philosophy publishing. Written by a distinguished list of scholars who have garnered particular recognition for their excellence in teaching, this series presents the vast sweep of today's philosophical exploration in highly accessible and affordable volumes. These books will prove valuable to philosophy teachers and their students as well as to other readers who share a general interest in philosophy.

Barbara Montero is an assistant professor at the City University of New York, College of Staten Island and the Graduate Center. Her research has focused on one or the other of two very different notions of body: body as the physical or material basis of everything, and body as the moving, breathing, flesh and blood instrument that we use when we run, walk, or dance. She has published articles in journals such as Nous, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, and the Journal of Consciousness Studies and has been the recipient of a number of awards including a recent NEH Research Fellowship for her work on proprioception.