Mind and Reality

--- lecturer: [email protected]

A course at the University of Warwick.

Lecture 01

Date given: Tuesday 6th October 2020

This is the main page for Lecture 01. I have also put backup recordings here. Or, if you prefer, you can see the slides with no audio or video here.

Points of View

Things with minds often or always have points of view on the world. But what is it to have a point of view?

Reading (optional): Crane, T. (2001). Elements of Mind: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

--- do one micro task for this unit

The Seven Questions

Seven questions we will investigate in this course. About the mind’s relation to the world, the influence of cognition on perception, awareness, the aspectual nature of mental states, action, personal identity and the relation between theories and the evidence which supports them.

Reading (optional):

  • Russell, B. (1910). Knowledge by Acquaintance and Knowledge by Description. Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, 11:108–128.
  • Levin, Daniel T., and Mahzarin R. Banaji. ‘Distortions in the Perceived Lightness of Faces: The Role of Race Categories’. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 135, no. 4 (2006): 501–12. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.135.4.501.

How to Use the Online Lectures

Watch with a friend, and talk. Take notes. Use the 2x speed option. Skip around. Ask questions.

Components of This Course

How your assessment breaks down, and what the formative (non-assessed) work is.

Seminar Tasks (yyrama)

The most important work on this course, apart from the exams, is the weekly seminar tasks. You need to submit some work before your seminar each week. This mostly involves writing, or re-writing, a mini essay as well as peer-reviewing another student’s work. The seminars exist for you to discuss your writing.

zoxiy In-Lecture Micro-Tasks

Watch the lectures with a friend (or several) that you can talk to as they go on. Answer the questions on zoxiy together, or after debating them.