Person

1. Read Descartes Meditations 4-6 in Cottingham. Then read  Descartes' mind body problem in Patton's The Cartoon Introduction to Philosophy (attached) to further understand what Descartes is saying.

http://sqapo.com/descartes.htm

2. Many later philosophers have a hard time with Descartes' dualism (that is, his dividing all things up into body (and nature) and mind (soul)) and the consequences of such division.  Below you will get a sense of how different groups of thinkers.  It will probably be easiest to read these  selections in the order in which I've listed them.

·  Read the summary "Several Theories of What Makes Up a Person" (attached).

· Read Paul Taylor's "Respect for Nature" (attached).

· Read Val Plumwood's "Descartes and Mind/Nature Dualism" pp 111-117 in Feminism and the Mystery of Nature (attached).

·  Read Wendell Berry’s “Choosing Health” (attached).

· Read Thomas Berry's quotation (attached).  (Note: Thomas Berry and Wendell Berry are two different men.)

· Read about the 2017 Indian court decision giving personhood rights to two rivers:   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/21/ganges-and-yamuna-rivers-granted-same-legal-rights-as-human-beings . 

· Watch the video "They're Made Out of Meat" (attached).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaFZTAOb7IE

3. Discussion 10:  What do you believe make someone a person? (Must a person be human?  Are all humans persons? What kind of treatment and rights does a person get?)  With which of the material assigned this week do you agree in your answer?  Why?  With which do you disagree? Why? Be specific.