{"product_id":"9780198033462","title":"What Am I?: Descartes and the Mind-Body Problem","description":"In his \u003cem\u003eMeditations\u003c\/em\u003e, Ren? Descartes asks, \"what am I?\"  His initial answer is \"a man.\"  But he soon discards it: \"But what is a man? Shall I say 'a rational animal'? No: for then I should inquire what an animal is, what rationality is, and in this way one question would lead down the slope to harder ones.\"  Instead of understanding what a man is, Descartes shifts to two new questions: \"What is Mind?\" and \"What is Body?\"  These questions develop into Descartes's main philosophical preoccupation: the Mind-Body distinction.  How can Mind and Body be independent entities, yet joined--essentially so--within a single human being?  If Mind and Body are really distinct, are human beings merely a \"construction\"?  On the other hand, if we respect the integrity of humans, are Mind and Body merely aspects of a human being and not subjects in and of themselves?  For centuries, philosophers have considered this classic philosophical puzzle.  Now, in this compact, engaging, and long-awaited work, UCLA philosopher Joseph Almog closely decodes the French philosopher's argument for distinguishing between the human mind and body while maintaining simultaneously their essential integration in a human being.  He argues that Descartes constructed a solution whereby the trio of Human Mind, Body, and Being are essentially interdependent yet remain each a genuine individual subject.  Almog's reading not only steers away from the most popular interpretations of Descartes, but also represents a scholar coming to grips directly with Descartes himself.  In doing so, Almog creates a work that Cartesian scholars will value, and that will also prove indispensable to philosophers of language, ontology, and the metaphysics of mind.","brand":"Oxford University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47079485604080,"sku":"9780198033462","price":33.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780198033462_p0.jpg?v=1763666214","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780198033462","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}