ABSTRACT
Where are we? Well, we said in the introduction we would focus on three sets of questions: the interpretation, truth and significance of physicalism. In Chapter 1, we saw that the significance of physicalism was best explained by its role in what we called ‘the standard picture,’ a picture that may be expressed in terms of five theses:
1 Physicalism is true-the basic thesis. 2 Physicalism summarizes the picture of the world implicit in the natural
sciences-the interpretative thesis. 3 It is most rational to believe the picture of the world implicit in the natural
sciences, whatever that picture happens to be-the epistemological thesis. 4 Physicalism is, prima facie, in conflict with many presuppositions of
everyday life-the conflict thesis. 5 The way to resolve these conflicts is to propose views about how to
interpret the presuppositions of everyday life so that they are compatible with physicalism-the resolution thesis.
