Table Of ContentPhilosophy for A Level
Philosophy for A Level is an accessible textbook for the new 2017 AQA Philosophy syllabus. Structured
closely around the AQA specification this textbook covers the two units, Metaphysics of God and
Metaphysics of Mind, in an engaging and student-friendly way. With chapters on ‘How to do
philosophy’, exam preparation providing students with the philosophical skills they need to succeed,
and an extensive glossary to support understanding, this book is ideal for students studying philosophy.
Each chapter includes:
• argument maps that help to develop students’ analytical and critical skills
• comprehension questions to test understanding
• discussion questions to generate evaluative argument
• explanation of and commentary on the AQA set texts
• ‘Thinking harder’ sections
• cross-references to help students make connections
• bullet-point summaries of each topic.
The companion website hosts a wealth of further resources, including PowerPoint slides, flashcards,
further reading, weblinks and handouts, all structured to accompany the textbook. It can be found at
www.routledge.com/cw/alevelphilosophy.
Michael Lacewing is a teacher of philosophy and theology at Christ’s Hospital school, and a former
Reader in Philosophy and Vice-Principal Academic at Heythrop College, University of London. He is
founder of the company A Level Philosophy (www.alevelphilosophy.co.uk), and advises the British
Philosophical Association on matters related to philosophy in schools.
Philosophy for A Level
Metaphysics of God and Metaphysics of
Mind
Michael Lacewing
First published 2017
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2017 Michael Lacewing
The right of Michael Lacewing to be identified as author of this work has been asserted
by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to
infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Lacewing, Michael, 1971- author.
Title: Philosophy for A level : metaphysics of God and metaphysics of mind /
Michael Lacewing.
Other titles: Metaphysics of God and metaphysics of mind
Description: New York : Routledge, 2017. | Includes index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017001770 | ISBN 9781138690400 (pbk. : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Philosophy--Textbooks. | Reasoning--Textbooks.
Classification: LCC BD31 .L26 2017 | DDC 107.6--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017001770
ISBN: 978-1-138-69040-0 (pbk)
ISBN: 9781315164588 (ebk)
Typeset in Frutiger
by Saxon Graphics Ltd, Derby
Visit the companion website: www.routledge.com/cw/alevelphilosophy
Contents
List of illustrations xiii
Acknowledgements xvii
Introduction 1
How to use this book 2
How to do philosophy 2
Following the syllabus 2
Additional features 3
Set texts 4
Glossary 4
Companion website and further resources 4
1 How to do philosophy 5
Philosophical argument 5
Deductive argument 6
Inductive argument 7
Understanding arguments and argument maps 9
Evaluating arguments 12
Evaluating claims 13
An aside: why reason? 14
Fallacies 15
Reading philosophy 15
Approaching the text 16
Engaging with the text 16
Beyond the text 17
Writing philosophy 18
What you need to know 18
Planning an essay 19
Writing an essay 20
A standard essay structure 21
General advice 22
vi Contents
2 Metaphysics of God 24
I. The concept and nature of ‘God’ 28
A. God’s attributes 28
Omniscience 29
Omnipotence 30
AQUINAS ON OMNIPOTENCE 30
Supreme goodness (omnibenevolence) 30
God and time 31
Thinking harder: Stump and Kretzmann on eternity 32
Key points: God’s attributes 38
B. Arguments for the incoherence of the concept of God 39
The paradox of the stone 39
The Euthyphro dilemma 41
PLATO’S DILEMMA 42
OMNIPOTENCE AND MORALITY 43
Thinking harder: good is the same property as what God wills 47
Omniscience and free human beings 48
Thinking harder: three solutions 50
Key points: arguments for the incoherence of the concept of
God 55
Summary: the concept and nature of ‘God’ 56
II. Arguments relating to the existence of God 56
A. Ontological arguments 57
St Anselm’s ontological argument 58
GAUNILO’S ‘PERFECT ISLAND’ OBJECTION 61
Thinking harder: Anselm’s reply 61
Descartes’ ontological argument 63
Two objections to ontological arguments 65
EMPIRICIST OBJECTIONS TO A PRIORI ARGUMENTS FOR EXISTENCE 65
KANT’S OBJECTION: EXISTENCE IS NOT A PREDICATE 67
Malcolm’s ontological argument 69
Thinking harder: a response to Malcolm 73
Key points: ontological arguments 73
B. Teleological/design arguments 74
The design argument from analogy 76
Hume’s objections 77
Contents vii
Paley’s design argument 79
THE PROBLEM OF SPATIAL DISORDER 85
EVOLUTION BY NATURAL SELECTION 85
Swinburne’s design argument 87
Swinburne’s response to Hume 90
Thinking harder: is the existence of a designer a good
explanation? 91
Is the designer God? 92
HUME’S OBJECTIONS 92
SWINBURNE’S RESPONSE 94
Key points: the argument from design 95
C. The cosmological argument 96
The Kala¯m argument 96
Thinking harder: infinity 97
Aquinas’ First and Second Ways 100
AQUINAS’ SECOND WAY 101
AQUINAS’ FIRST WAY 103
Thinking harder: Descartes’ cosmological argument 106
Two issues for arguments from causation 110
HUME ON THE CAUSAL PRINCIPLE 110
Thinking harder: the possibility of an infinite series 111
Aquinas’ Third Way 115
Leibniz’s argument from contingency 117
Two more issues for cosmological arguments 120
RUSSELL ON THE FALLACY OF COMPOSITION 120
THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF A NECESSARY BEING 122
Key points: the cosmological argument 123
D. The problem of evil 125
An outline of the problem 125
Two types of evil 127
Thinking harder: Midgley on human evil 128
The logical problem of evil 131
A FREE WILL THEODICY 131
Thinking harder: Midgley on free will 133
PLANTINGA’S FREE WILL DEFENCE 139
NATURAL EVIL 141
The evidential problem of evil 142
viii Contents
PLANTINGA’S FREE WILL DEFENCE AGAIN 144
HICK’S ‘SOUL-MAKING’ THEODICY 145
Key points: the problem of evil 149
Summary: arguments relating to the existence of God 151
III. Religious language 152
The distinction between cognitivism and non-
cognitivism 152
Verificationism 155
OBJECTIONS 157
Thinking harder: verification and falsification 159
The University debate 161
Flew’s challenge 161
Mitchell’s response 163
Hare’s ‘bliks’ 164
Key points: religious language 165
Summary: religious language 167
3 Metaphysics of mind 168
I. What do we mean by ‘mind’? 172
Features of mental states 172
INTENTIONALITY 173
PHENOMENAL PROPERTIES/QUALIA 174
Overview of the six theories 176
Key points: what do we mean by ‘mind’? 180
II. Dualist theories: substance dualism 181
A. Substance dualism 181
Descartes’ indivisibility argument 182
THE MENTAL IS DIVISIBLE IN SOME SENSE 183
NOT EVERYTHING THOUGHT OF AS PHYSICAL IS DIVISIBLE 183
Thinking harder: is the mind a substance? 184
Descartes’ conceivability argument 185
MIND WITHOUT BODY IS NOT CONCEIVABLE 187
Thinking harder: what is conceivable may not be
metaphysically possible (I) 189
WHAT IS METAPHYSICALLY POSSIBLE TELLS US NOTHING ABOUT THE ACTUAL
WORLD 194
Key points: substance dualism 195
Contents ix
B. Issues facing substance dualism 196
Issues facing interactionist substance dualism 196
THE CONCEPTUAL INTERACTION PROBLEM 197
THE EMPIRICAL INTERACTION PROBLEM 199
Issues facing epiphenomenalist substance dualism 200
The problem of other minds (I) 201
THE ARGUMENT FROM ANALOGY 202
THE EXISTENCE OF OTHER MINDS IN THE BEST HYPOTHESIS 203
Thinking harder: Avramides on Descartes’ solution 204
Substance dualism makes a ‘category mistake’ 207
Key points: issues facing substance dualism 209
Summary: substance dualism 211
III. Physicalist theories 211
Physicalism 212
SUPERVENIENCE 213
Key points: physicalism 216
A. Mind–brain type identity theory 216
Type identity theory 216
SMART ON CORRELATION, IDENTITY AND REDUCTION 218
Issues 221
PUTNAM AND THE MULTIPLE REALISABILITY OF MENTAL STATES 221
DUALIST ARGUMENTS 223
Key points: mind–brain type identity theory 225
B. Eliminative materialism 225
Patricia Churchland on reduction and elimination 226
Paul Churchland on why ‘folk psychology’ might be
false 232
Issues 234
OUR CERTAINTY ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF OUR MENTAL STATES TAKES
PRIORITY OVER OTHER CONSIDERATIONS 234
FOLK PSYCHOLOGY HAS GOOD PREDICTIVE AND EXPLANATORY POWER
(AND SO IS THE BEST HYPOTHESIS) 235
Thinking harder: the articulation of eliminative materialism as
a theory is self-refuting 237
Key points: eliminative materialism 238
