Pragmatism and the Problem of Mind in Nature

Beasley, Brandon Eric

Pragmatism and the Problem of Mind in Nature

dc.contributor.advisor	Migotti, Mark
dc.contributor.author	Beasley, Brandon Eric
dc.contributor.committeemember	Ereshefsky, Marc
dc.contributor.committeemember	Liebesman, David
dc.contributor.committeemember	Ritter, Elizabeth
dc.contributor.committeemember	Talisse, Robert
dc.date.accessioned	2024-01-19T16:01:42Z
dc.date.available	2024-01-19T16:01:42Z
dc.date.issued	2024-01-17
dc.description.abstract	In this dissertation I argue that a rational reconstruction of the philosophical tradition of pragmatism yields materials to resolve the philosophical problem of mind in nature. This is not the problem of consciousness, but rather the problem created by the facts that we human beings are both animals, products of nature in nature, and beings whose lives and minds are essentially structured by conceptual meanings, unlike any other creature in nature, and potentially in conflict with the ‘disenchanted’ conception of nature we owe to the natural sciences, which seems to have no room for such things as meanings, reasons, and norms. Pragmatism aims to understand how conceptual meanings can be a part of nature by showing how conceptual mindedness is a kind and development of the more basic mindedness exhibited in goal-directed, purposive activity. The pragmatist wants to show that meanings grow out of, and are embodied in, the natural purposiveness of organisms and the difference that language and linguistic practices make to that natural purposiveness in the human context. I canvass the history of the pragmatist tradition of wrestling with this question in order to understand the nature and scope of the problem, the useful tools which pragmatism has to construct a solution, and to propose a way to put these tools to use in a new way that has a better chance of resolving the problem.
dc.identifier.citation	Beasley, B. E. (2024). Pragmatism and the problem of mind in nature (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/1880/117999
dc.language.iso	en
dc.publisher.faculty	Arts
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subject.classification	Philosophy
dc.title	Pragmatism and the Problem of Mind in Nature
dc.type	doctoral thesis
thesis.degree.discipline	Philosophy
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary
thesis.degree.name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent	I do not require a thesis withhold – my thesis will have open access and can be viewed and downloaded publicly as soon as possible.