ABSTRACT
This chapter explains two different definitions of mentality that comprise the core of the two pictures. It discusses non-Cartesian concept of mind and consciousness to construct a systematic and theoretically satisfying explanation of what it is for a mental state to be conscious — an explanation of what it is that distinguishes conscious from nonconscious mental states. The chapter explores how the definition of mentality central to each of the two pictures determines a distinct conception of consciousness and the Cartesian concept of consciousness makes any informative explanation of consciousness impossible. It argues that the non-Cartesian explanation can save the phenomenological appearances and explain the data of consciousness as well as the more familiar Cartesian picture. The chapter also argues that the standard considerations that favour the Cartesian view are baseless. It concludes with some observations about consciousness and our knowledge of the mental, and about the actual significance of the insights that underlie the Cartesian picture.
