This study is an unusual contribution to the philosophy of mind in that
it argues for the sometimes unfashionable view of dualism: that mind and
matter are distinct and separate entities as Descartes believed. The
author takes as his point of departure the imaginative hypothesis of
disembodiment, which establishes the possibility of the mind's being a
quite non-material thing. There are clear casual correlations between
what is physical and what is mental, and the most serious issue
confronting dualism since Descartes has been how such an interaction is
possible. Dr Hart sets out to answer this question by showing that the
issue is as much about the nature of causation as it is about the
natures of mind and matter.