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The Rediscovery of the Mind

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Philosophy Biological naturalism

By John Searle

Summary

Consciousness is a real, biologically natural phenomenon produced by brain processes. Rejects both dualism (consciousness is not separate from the brain) and materialism/functionalism (consciousness has irreducible first-person ontology). The "Chinese Room" argument (1980) shows syntax ≠ semantics.

Why It Matters

Searle's "biological naturalism" is a middle path — consciousness is real and irreducible, but fully natural and caused by biology.

Notes

This entry is a seed import from the Phase 1 Knowledge Inventory. It has not yet been manually reviewed.