The Dialogic Mind: Bridging the Gap Between Mind and Body

Perhaps the most popular and controversial issue in the philosophy of mind is the mind-body problem that dates back at least to Plato and Aristotle. This philosophical paper aims to explore the various standard positions on the mind-body problem and discern the philosophical assumptions of the framework of the debate within which monist and dualist doctrines made an attempt to answer this problem. However, on the basis of Wittgenstein’s theory of language as well as the concept of languaging which is referred to as the use of language to mediate complex cognitive acts of thinking in learning processes, and in an attempt to argue why none of these doctrines are able to put an end to such a debated issue, the dialogic mind is propounded as an alternative theoretical and explanatory solution to the problem. The dialogical mind, having its roots in the works of scholars, such as Wittgenstein, Bakhtin, Vygotsky, and swain, seeks to put some flesh on the idea that the process of thinking involves a conversation with oneself. Specifically, balancing the relationship between the mind and the body, the dialogic mind provides a bridge between the body and the mind, believing in the unity of these two realms by the mediating power of language. In fact, it is argued that the dialogical mind is a powerful theoretical basis to comprehend and understand complex issues.