Functionalism And Eliminative Materialism By Paul M Churchland

Paul M. Churchland is a Canadian-native philosopher known for his specialty in the philosophy of the mind and neurophilosophy. As a previous professor at the University of California, San Diego, Churchland is a major proponent of the theory of eliminative materialism which he discusses in more detail in his article “Functionalism and Eliminative Materialism.” Churchland provides a great depth of the issues and differing positions associated with the mind-body problem, and I will work to defend Churchland’s proposed theory of eliminative materialism from the functionalist theory of mind in three parts. First, I will analyze in depth both functionalism and eliminative materialism with supporting examples and draw the difference in both ideologies.
Darwin’s theory of evolution states that all life is related in some way, and have descended from one common ancestor. He said as creatures evolve with time, the beneficial mutation will be preserved since they aid the survival of future generations - the theories of descent with modification and natural selection. Churchland argues that this process which ultimately led to the human species is a purely material mechanism, which started from a material starting point, in which the result must be purely material. The folk psychology that inherited characteristics are brought down from generation to generation in order to survive isn’t always true. There are countless anatomical body parts that are now vestigial - they have lost their ancestral function. Some examples are nipples in men, the appendix, or wisdom teeth. Millions of people have these removed for various reasons, and can healthily and happily resume their everyday lives. So as eliminative materialism would conclude, the idea that our body parts serve a sole purpose in proving us with the ability to survive in the world has been eliminated by scientific proof that many of these organs have no more use for
Instead, we will be able to form far more intelligent theories of defining phenomena. If we take a look the theory of evolution, vestigial organs and mental states of pain, they all help to demonstrate the true meaning of eliminative materialism and why it makes so much sense. I believe the clearest way to understand and to favor eliminativism from functionalism is the simple fact that functionalism forces concepts of folk psychology to embody brain states, but it is much more probable that such mirroring doesn’t exist. It is unreasonable to say the mental state of feeling excited is the same as when you see your favorite color, just because they both give you a feeling of joy and delight. They may provide an output of what appears to be the same feeling of happiness, but they both come from different places and are made up of different inner