Summary

The Soul Hypothesis”: Some Aspects of Today Dualism

Despite the criticism that substance dualism was an inadequate attitude towards mental activity and its relation to physical processes, it has supporters today. There is increasing discussion of the so-called “the Soul Hypothesis”, which purportedly allows the gaps in the current scientific description of the world to be filled in a meaningful way. This implies that there are certain assumptions, still not reflected properly, which serve dualists as a lifebuoy in the stormy seas of critique. The paper tries to show that dualists unjustly abuse the Cartesian idea of clara et distincta perceptio. The first conclusion of the paper is that the obvious existence of subjective consciousness does not necessarily count as the scientifically important fact. The second conclusion is as follows: “the soul hypothesis”, as a theoretical construct, which is intended to explain the existence of the subjective consciousness, does not inherit obviousness of the observational phenomena. While stressing the significance of their doctrine to the contemporary worldview, current dualists are reluctant to engage in analysis of these logical aspects.