The Mind-Body Problem

By: J.-M. Kuczynski

Narrated by: Anjali Sarkar

Length: 1 hr and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

In this book, each of the possible positions concerning the relationship between mind and body is clearly explained and thoroughly critiqued. It is concluded that, although mental events are identical with physical events, mentalistic statements are not equivalent with physicalistic statements. It is also shown that the way in which mentalistic statements are non-equivalent with physicalistic statements is deeper than the way in which biological statements are non-equivalent with microphysical statements. In other words, the sense in which mind and body lie on opposite sides of an "explanatory gap" is much stronger than the sense in which biology and microphysics do so.

©2016 John-Michael Kuczynski (P)2016 John-Michael Kuczynski

incredibly smart and rigorous

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes, if you want to understand how mind relates to brain, this is the book, there is no other. it has no equal

Who was your favorite character and why?

i really, really liked the discussion of functionalism and davidsonian anomalous monism

What about Anjali Sarkar’s performance did you like?

the dispassionate

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

that there is an explanatory gap

Any additional comments?

this was a new and fresh look at an old problem

clear, thorough, powerful

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes, to anyone who is interested in serious philosophy. but only to very, very smart people

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Mind-Body Problem?

the refutation of Davidson's interpretivism

Have you listened to any of Anjali Sarkar’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not

If you could give The Mind-Body Problem a new subtitle, what would it be?

the truth about the mental

outrageously smart

Would you consider the audio edition of The Mind-Body Problem to be better than the print version?

yes, because the prose is almost poetic at times, which you don't get if you're just reading it. k's prose is hard, which makes you want to skip through it. but when you listen to it, the logic comes out, and the beauty too, and then you want to listen to more and more. which is why i am buying his other stuff, even in areas that i don't usually care about

Who was your favorite character and why?

i like the part about davidson

What does Anjali Sarkar bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

a kind of feminine professionalism, which balances k's autocratic iconoclasticism

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes, but there is a lot of info

Any additional comments?

now i believe in the explanatory gap. makes stephen pinker look like a high school teacher.