Does accepting Dualism mean “giving up”?
The reason for which Dennett believes this is because rather than offering an explanation of how the mind works, dualism denies that an explanation can be given. Vendler, one of the key modern-day defenders of dualism, provides the perfect ammunition for Dennett s attack: I believe that the elements of human consciousness, the buzzing-blooming confusion of our Humean selves are in principle beyond what science can explain. (Vendler 1992 p.318). The claim that there are phenomena beyond what science can explain seems a foolhardy one in our scientific age, and this is precisely what Dennett is referring to when he writes of dualism s antiscientific stance. Vendler, in defence of dualism, discusses the fact that scientists may be able to explain how humans perceive colour and pain but cannot explain the actual experience, what it is like to see a certain colour, or to feel a certain pain (Ibid. p.320-1). This seems perfectly reasonable, but hardly evidence for dualism; current science may
