ABSTRACT
With the failure of behaviourism, one attempt to establish strong materialism has failed. Since we cannot analyse descriptions of conscious states into descriptions of physical behaviour, it remains possible that such states are in fact non-physical states of a physical being. Moreover, with the partial failure of functionalism, the cartesian conception of meaning has been left intact, at least with respect to words referring to conscious experiences. Even the partial success of functionalism, with respect to words like ‘belief’ and ‘desire’, has done nothing to establish strong materialism. For the states occupying the causal roles in question may in fact be non-physical ones.
