Philosophy 5: Critical Thinking and Composition

Pierce College 

Department of History, Philosophy, & Sociology 

 

 

 

Questions about Brentano's Theory of Mind

 

 

 

[The following are anonymous questions asked during week eleven.] 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AM §'s Questions: 

 

Can you please point out how Alexander's [claim about] the existence of unconscious bias is relevant to Brentano's mental phenomena?  Or ... What are the similarities?  What are the differences? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How does any of this information relate to our lives? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why are we learning this? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How many things does Brentano talk about/mention in the assigned reading? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is Brentano's goal? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Brentano playing support in our essay? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who is Brentano and what is his idea? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How can Brentano be contradicted/alternative to his idea of thinking (awareness)? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who could the naysayer be when looking at Brentano's argument? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How should I incorporate Brentano's idea with a naysayer? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How can we link Brentano to Alexander? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How does Brentano's claim relate to Alexander's problem? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I really don't understand how the "Inner perception" can be infinite.  There is a limit to what we can know. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What does Brentano have to say about the theory of unconscious? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Does Brentano believe that other animals have the ability to recognize inner-perception? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is inner perception? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Does Brentano recognize the unconscious? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can you give a very brief explanation of Brentano's rejected and accepted solution? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is the importance of Brentano's argument? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can you briefly explain again Brentano's incidental awareness? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Briefly describe Brentano's solution to his own problem. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What was the problem in Brentano?  Is a mental phenomenon the same as thinking? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are the primary and secondary observations just like the internal and external perceptions–or are they different? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Brentano saying that we are always aware of what we are thinking (or doing)?  Is peripheral awareness necessary for conscious thought? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can we go over Brentano's solution to the infinite regress problem one more time?  (I understand mental phenomena but am still unclear on what mental states are and what about them are different from mental phenomena.) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can we talk about Brentano, and his first mistake with his theory–then explain the accepted one in our essay? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do we need a peer-reviewed article that either supports or rejects Brentano? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PM §'s Questions:

 

How can you have inner perception of in other words be aware that you are thinking if you are thinking unconsciously?  It seems like the existence of the unconscious cancels out the existence of inner perception. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[I know someone that] rolls his shirt like ten times [whenever he is on the phone], and if he gets excited he does it faster.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why is inner perception shown twice on the desk example on the board? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How could we use Brentano's solution to his problem to support Alexander's claim about the existence of the unconscious? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How could we organize an essay to argue that Brentano cannot support Alexander's claim of the unconscious? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Out of the pictures you have illustrated regarding mental phenomena, which one relates to Brentano's final understanding of mental phenomena? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So Brentano believes we can't think about our old memories or thoughts? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is mental phenomena?  What is inner perception?  What are Brentano's claims about ourselves and others?  Why is the unconscious important? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can you explain again the example with Open Classes?  Least understood: mental phenomena. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to Brentano, does mental life consist of observation and incidental awareness?  I understand that we can use his argument to make sense of the existence of unconscious states (although he rejects the existence of it). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, Brentano knows that unconscious[ness] exists but does not like it as the solution to his problem?  Is that what his is sort of saying? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don't understand how Brentano denies the existence of unconscious awareness.  Can you please explain it again? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How can we be wrong about the primary object, but not the secondary object?  What is the importance of knowing that when you think, you are aware that you are thinking? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Does the theory of inner perception relate to interpretation?  Least understood: inner perception. Understood a little more: directed.  Understood a little more: object.