The phrase 'ghost in the machine' critiques the incorrect belief that:

The phrase 'ghost in the machine' critiques the incorrect belief that:

• A. DNA can be altered
• B. Oxytocin causes hallucinations
• C. Whistle blowers can make anonymous reports
• D. The body is separate from the mind

Answer: (D)

The idea being challenged is that the mind and the body are two separate existences: a non-physical mind (the “ghost”) inhabiting or controlling a physical body (the “machine”). In philosophy of mind, this view—Cartesian dualism—holds that mental states are distinct from bodily processes. The phrase highlights how absurd it is to think of a separate mind as a ghost operating inside a body-machine, a image used to argue that mental phenomena arise from or are inseparable from physical processes rather than existing as a separate, non-physical entity. So the critique targets the belief that the body is separate from the mind.

The idea being challenged is that the mind and the body are two separate existences: a non-physical mind (the “ghost”) inhabiting or controlling a physical body (the “machine”). In philosophy of mind, this view—Cartesian dualism—holds that mental states are distinct from bodily processes. The phrase highlights how absurd it is to think of a separate mind as a ghost operating inside a body-machine, a image used to argue that mental phenomena arise from or are inseparable from physical processes rather than existing as a separate, non-physical entity. So the critique targets the belief that the body is separate from the mind.