R. William Hasker (/ˈhæskər/; born 1935) is an Americanphilosopher and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Philosophy atHuntington University. For many years, he was editor of the prestigious journalFaith and Philosophy. He has published many journal articles and books dealing with issues such as themind–body problem,theodicy, and divine omniscience.
Hasker received his PhD in theology and philosophy of religion from theUniversity of Edinburgh.[1]
Hasker has argued foropen theism and a view known asemergent dualism regarding the nature of the human person. Hasker regards the soul as an "emergent" substance, dependent upon the body for its existence.[2][3] Emergent dualism is a type of substance dualism which argues that the soul develops "naturally from the structure and functioning of the organism".[2][3]
Hasker's emergent dualism rejects cartesian dualism,property dualism, and physicalism.[4] He argues that emergent dualism supports free will, mental causation, rationality and survival of physical death and is compatible with neuroscientific discoveries showing the dependence of mind on brain and evolutionary theory.[3][4] Emergent dualism states that in the course of evolutionary development an individual mind as an immaterial substance emerges from the brain. He likens the individual mind to a magnetic field in its qualitative difference from the physical properties that generate it and also in its ability to act on the brain that generates it. Hasker disagrees with the traditional dualist view that the mind exists independently of the body as he holds the view that it is generated by matter. He defends survival of death on the ground that God's mind produces another body to sustain it.[4]
His 1999 publicationThe Emergent Self discusses thephilosophy of mind and attempts to establish that mind cannot be solely a material process but is also not completely distinct from its physical basis in the brain.[5]
Emergent dualism has been criticized by other substance dualist philosophers includingFrank B. Dilley andStewart Goetz.[4][6]
Hasker has published numerous works. A selection:
