Dennett

Daniel C. Dennett III

By Benway.B

  • Birth

    Daniel C. Dennett was born on 28 March 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts.

  • Education - BA

    Education - BA
    He received his Bachelors of Arts in Philosophy at Harvard University in 1963.

  • Education - Ph.D.

    Education - Ph.D.
    He later pursued his graduate studies, studying under Gilbert Ryle at the University of Oxford, earning his Ph.D. in Philosophy in 1965.

  • Nature of Consciousness

    During Dennett's time at Oxford, he gained an interest in the nature of consciousness, which he wrote his thesis on. His thesis on the nature of consciousness later became his first book, published in 1969 titled "Content and Consciousness." In it, he attempts to diffuse the mind-body conundrum by explaining how the mind and physical body interact together.

  • Interdisciplinary Strategy

    Interdisciplinary Strategy
    One of Daniel Dennett's significant contributions to the philosophy of science was his idea that "only by being informed by science could one have a productive philosophical debate about the mind and find a solution to the mind-body problem" (Dennett). He articulates this need for interdisciplinary study in the form of a joke in the following TED Talk video (6:55 - 7:30): [https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_dennett_the_illusion_of_consciousness#t-448576]

  • Tufts University

    In 1971 Dennett went to work at Tufts University as a University Professor. He later became the university's Director of the Center for Cognitive Studies in 1985 due to his cognitive science contributions.

  • MIT

    In 1993, Dennett went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he worked on developing artificial intelligence with Rodney Brooks, inventor of the humanoid robot COG and Director of MIT's AI lab.

  • Author

    Author
    Dennett authored numerous books that explain his theories of consciousness. His works covered in significant detail areas such as the evolution of the brain, linguistic difficulties of describing action to the brain, and even religious thought.

  • Major Works

    -Dennett, Daniel. Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon. Viking Press, 2006.
    -Dennett, Daniel. Consciousness Explained. 1st ed., Back Bay Books, 1992.
    -Dennett, Daniel. Content and Consciousness. 1st ed., New York, Humanities Press, 1969.
    -Dennett, Daniel. Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meaning of Life. Simon & Schuster, 1996.
    -Dennett, Daniel, and Alvin Plantinga. Science and Religion: Are They Compatible? (Point/Counterpoint). 1st ed., Oxford University Press, 2010.

  • Works Cited

    (1) McNeil, Taylor. “Our Brains, Our Selves.” Tufts Now, 2 Sept. 2020, now.tufts.edu/articles/daniel-dennett-our-brains-our-selves
    (2) Munoz-Suarez, Carlos, and Felipe De Brigard. “Content and Consciousness Revisited, with Replies by Daniel Dennett.” Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews, 8 Apr. 2016, ndpr.nd.edu/reviews/content-and-consciousness-revisited-with-replies-by-daniel-dennett

  • Works Cited

    (1) The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Daniel C. Dennett.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Mar. 2021, www.britannica.com/biography/Daniel-C-Dennett.