Phenomenology and Mental Imagery
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Dennett's Theory of the Folk Theory of Consciousness
Dennett’s Theory of the Folk Theory of Consciousness1 Justin Sytsma Abstract: It is not uncommon to find assumptions being made about folk psychology in the discussions of phenomenal consciousness in philosophy of mind. In this article I consider one example, focusing on what Dan Dennett says about the “folk theory of consciousness.” I show that he holds that the folk believe that qualities like colors that we are acquainted with in ordinary perception are phenomenal qualities. Nonetheless, the shape of the folk theory is an empirical matter and in the absence of empirical investigation there is ample room for doubt. Fortunately, experimental evidence on the topic is now being produced by experimental philosophers and psychologists. This article contributes to this growing literature, presenting the results of six new studies on the folk view of colors and pains. I argue that the results indicate against Dennett’s theory of the folk theory of consciousness. The existence of phenomenal consciousness is often taken for granted in the philosophical and scientific literature on the topic. Sometimes, this attitude is supported by claims that phenomenal consciousness is in some way evident in our ordinary experience itself.2 The prevalence of this attitude can also be seen in the way that some skeptics about phenomenal consciousness discuss the supposed phenomenon. For example, the qualia eliminativist Dan Dennett seems to accept that belief in qualia is part of our “folk theory of consciousness” (2005, 31). In contrast, I have argued that phenomenal consciousness is not evident in ordinary experience alone—that it is not phenomenologically obvious—and that this can be drawn out by 1 To appear in the Journal of Consciousness Studies. -
Julian Jaynes's Software Archeology
Julian Jaynes’s Software Archeology DANIEL DENNETT Daniel Dennett received his B .A. from Harvard and his D. Phil. from Oxford. Following academic positions at the University of California at Irvine, at Harvard, and at Oxford, he joined the Department of Philosophy at Tufts University, where he is currently Professor of Philosophy. Dr. Dennett has also held the position of Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. He lectures widely in North America, Great Britain and Europe. His publications include books such as Brainstorms, The Mind’s I (with Douglas Hofstadter), and most recently Elbow Room, and journal articles on the issues of mind, consciousness, self hallucinations, and even grey matter. He has also written numerous reviews of theories of prominent philosophers. linguists, and psychologists, such as Passing the Buck to Biology on Noam Chomsky and Why do we think what we do about why we think what we do? on Nelson Goodman. What a philosopher would usually do on an occasion like this is to begin to launch into a series of devastating arguments, criticisms, and counter-examples, and I am not going to do that today, because in this instance I don’t think it would be very constructive. I think first it is very important to understand Julian Jaynes’ project to see a little bit more about what the whole shape of it is, and delay the barrage of nitpicking objections and criticisms until we have seen what the edifice as a whole is. After all, on the face of it, it is preposterous, and I have found that in talking with other philosophers my main task is to convince them to take it seriously when they are very reluctant to do this. -
Alister Mcgrath's Anti-Mind-Body Dualism: Neuroscientific and Philosophical Quandaries for Christian Physicalism Brandon Rickabaugh* I
TRINJ40NS (2019) 215-240 ALISTER MCGRATH'S ANTI-MIND-BODY DUALISM: NEUROSCIENTIFIC AND PHILOSOPHICAL QUANDARIES FOR CHRISTIAN PHYSICALISM BRANDON RICKABAUGH* I. INTRODUCTION Here is a staggering truth: the ontology of the human person currently embraced by the most vocal Christian scholars working on this issue is a view that almost no Christians thought plausible only 100 years ago. Until recently, the dominant view among Christian thinkers has been various forms of mind-body dualism (hereafter, dualism), according to which the human person comprises body and soul.1 In stark disagreement, many contemporary Christian scholars vigorously advance antidualism and defend physicalism (reductive or nonreductive), understanding the human person as fundamentally physical.2 These Christian physicalists proffer the strong impression of a uniform rejection of dualism across the neuroscientific, theological, and philosophical communities, as if dualism has been defeated, just as phlogiston was in in the 1770s. Here is another staggering truth: this certain-defeat-of-dualism narrative is demonstrably false. There is, in fact, a growing resurgence of dualism in philosophy. The recent Blackwell Companion Brandon Rickabaugh is a PhD candidate in the Department of Philosophy at Baylor University. This paper won the 2018-2019 Harold O. J. Brown Award for Student Scholarship. aSee Paul Gavarilyuk, "The Incorporeality of the Soul in Patristic Thought," in Christian Physicalism? Philosophical Theological Criticisms, ed. Keith Loftin and Joshua Farris (Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2017), 1-26; and Thomas Atkinson, "Christian Physicalism: Against the Medieval Divines," in Loftin and Farris, Christian Physicalism?, 27-42. This isn't to say that dualism was the only view, as there is a tiny minority of Christian physicalists in the history of the church. -
Intentional Systems in Cognitive Ethology: the "Panglossian Paradigm" Defended
THE BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (1983) 6, 343-390 Printed in the United States of America Intentional systems in cognitive ethology: The "Panglossian paradigm" defended Daniel C. Dennett Department of Philosophy, Tufts University, Medford, Mass. 02155 Abstract: Ethologists and others studying animal behavior in a "cognitive" spirit are in need of a descriptive language and method that are neither anachronistically bound by behaviorist scruples nor prematurely committed to particular "information-processing models. "Just such an interim descriptive method can be found in intentional system theory. The use of intentional system theory is illustrated with the case of the apparently communicative behavior of vervet monkeys. A way of using the theory to generate data - including usable, testable "anecdotal" data - is sketched. The underlying assumptions of this approach can be seen to ally it directly with "adaptationist' theorizing in evolutionary biology, which has recently come under attack from Stephen Gould and Richard Lewontin, who castigate it as the "Panglossian paradigm." Their arguments, which are strongly analogous to B. F. Skinner's arguments against "mentalism," point to certain pitfalls that attend the careless exercise of such "Panglossian" thinking (and rival varieties of thinking as well), but do not constitute a fundamental objection to either adaptationist theorizing or its cousin, intentional system theory. Keywords: adaptation; animal cognition; behaviorism; cognitive ethology; communication; comparative psychology; consciousness; -
Vasubandhu's) Commentary on His "Twenty Stanzas" with Appended Glossary of Technical Terms
AN INTRODUCTION AND TRANSLATION OF VINITADEVA'S EXPLANATION OF THE FIRST TEN VERSES OF (VASUBANDHU'S) COMMENTARY ON HIS "TWENTY STANZAS" WITH APPENDED GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS Gregory Alexander Hillis Palo Alto, California B.A., University of California, Santa Cruz, 1979 A Thesis Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Virginia in Candidacy for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Religious Studies University of Virginia May, 1993 ABSTRACT In this thesis I argue that Vasubandhu categorically rejects the position that objects exist external to the mind. To support this interpretation, I engage in a close reading of Vasubandhu's Twenty Stanzas (Vif!lsatika, nyi shu pa), his autocommentary (vif!lsatika- vrtti, nyi shu pa'i 'grel pa), and Vinrtadeva's sub-commentary (prakaraiJa-vif!liaka-f'ika, rab tu byed pa nyi shu pa' i 'grel bshad). I endeavor to show how unambiguous statements in Vasubandhu's root text and autocommentary refuting the existence of external objects are further supported by Vinitadeva's explanantion. I examine two major streams of recent non-traditional scholarship on this topic, one that interprets Vasubandhu to be a realist, and one that interprets him to be an idealist. I argue strenuously against the former position, citing what I consider to be the questionable methodology of reading the thought of later thinkers such as Dignaga and Dharmak:Irti into the works of Vasubandhu, and argue in favor of the latter position with the stipulation that Vasubandhu does accept a plurality of separate minds, and he does not assert the existence of an Absolute Mind. -
The Manifest Image and the Scientific Image(1)
(1) The Manifest Image and the Scientific Image Bas C. van Fraassen Princeton University (published: pp. 29-52 in D. Aerts (ed.). Einstein Meets Magritte: The White Book -- An Interdisciplinary Reflection. Dordrecht: Kluwer, 1999.) PART ONE. WORLDVIEWS IN COLLISION (?) .................................... 2 1. The Clash ........................................................... 2 2. The three main differences between the Images ....................... 3 PART TWO. THE PLAGUE OF IRREMEDIABLE VAGUENESS .......................... 4 3. Deconstructing the Manifest Image ................................... 4 4. Deconstructing the Scientific Image ................................. 5 5. Philosophical choices in response ................................... 7 PART THREE. AN INCOHERENT FICTION ....................................... 8 6. The Images as philosophical miscreants .............................. 8 6.1 What is this thing called the Manifest Image? ................... 8 6.2 And what of that thing called the Scientific Image? ............. 9 6.3 The dialectic that engenders the dichotomy ...................... 9 7. The very idea of images .......................................... 10 PART FOUR. REAL LIFE WITH SCIENCE ..................................... 11 8. A new beginning .................................................... 12 9. The continuity of common sense and science in method ............... 13 10. Perspectival discourse and relativity ............................ 13 11. Value- and function-laden discourse ............................. -
Who's Who in the Singularity
COMPUTER SCIENTIST and now you can either anticipate in the resolution of all human cannot see into the future to predict prediction that individual human and gaseous states of matter: the world (initially under the direction of science-fi ction writer Vernor or sco at many di erent kinds problems, including illness and anything. “Machine intelligence” brains (and most probably their state becomes funda mentally di erent but humans) design the next generation of Vinge sketched out a seminal of singularities. Perhaps the limited life span. The “event represents the prediction that of consciousness) will be replicable in in ways that may not be immediately machines, eventually supe rintelligent Who’s Who In modern singularity hypothesis most inclusive variant is the one horizon” idea corresponds most computers will achieve human- level computerized form, leading to (among perceptible to individuals immersed levels will be reached. The e ect is 15 years ago in his essay “The we label “technotopia,” the closely to Vinge’s original: a con- intelligence and either consciousness other things) virtual immortality. Kevin in it at the time. The “intelligence similar to the accelerating rate of Coming Technological Singularity.” scenario in which computers fl uence of technological changes, or something indistinguishable from it. Kelly’s “phase change” hypothesis explosion” hypothesis, initially technological change anticipated by The Singularity Since then lots of other people reach and exceed human levels of most likely including machine “Uploading,” which is also part of likens the singularity to the changes developed by Turing associate I.J. techno topians, but the path for getting have taken up the cause, so intelligence, essentially resulting intelligence, beyond which we the techno topian vision, refers to the between the solid and liquid or liquid Goode, postulates that as machines there is di erent. -
The Epoche and the Intentional Stance
Journal of Cognition and Neuroethics The Epoche and the Intentional Stance David Haack The New School Biography An element that ties all of my work together is a deep pluralistic impulse. Before beginning the study of philosophy at the New School for Social Research, the tradition in philosophy I was most aligned with was pragmatism. I am currently completing my master’s thesis in philosophy of mind and phenomenology. In addition to my interest in epistemology and ontology, I have a secondary interest in ethical theories from antiquity. I find myself both interested in modern philosophy as a science (its intersection with the cognitive sciences) and antiquity’s interest in ethics as how to live a life. In addition to my interest in ethics within antiquity, I have a specific affection for John Dewey’s theories of democracy and education. Publication Details Journal of Cognition and Neuroethics (ISSN: 2166-5087). April, 2016. Volume 4, Issue 1. Citation Haack, David. 2016. “The Epoche and the Intentional Stance.” Journal of Cognition and Neuroethics 4 (1): 27–44. The Epoche and the Intentional Stance David Haack Abstract In this paper I explore the issue of intentionality by looking at the thought of Daniel Dennett and Edmund Husserl. I argue that despite the differences between Dennett’s ‘heterophenomenology’ and Husserl’s phenomenology, the two ways of viewing intentional content, and therefore consciousness, more broadly are not incompatible. I claim that we can view consciousness in a way that incorporates both the phenomenological and heterophenomenological methods. I begin by outlining Husserl’s phenomenology before moving on to a description of Dennett’s heterophenomenology. -
Reflexive Monism
Reflexive Monism Max Velmans, Goldsmiths, University of London; email [email protected]; http://www.goldsmiths.ac.uk/psychology/staff/velmans.php Journal of Consciousness Studies (2008), 15(2), 5-50. Abstract. Reflexive monism is, in essence, an ancient view of how consciousness relates to the material world that has, in recent decades, been resurrected in modern form. In this paper I discuss how some of its basic features differ from both dualism and variants of physicalist and functionalist reductionism, focusing on those aspects of the theory that challenge deeply rooted presuppositions in current Western thought. I pay particular attention to the ontological status and seeming “out- thereness” of the phenomenal world and to how the “phenomenal world” relates to the “physical world”, the “world itself”, and processing in the brain. In order to place the theory within the context of current thought and debate, I address questions that have been raised about reflexive monism in recent commentaries and also evaluate competing accounts of the same issues offered by “transparency theory” and by “biological naturalism”. I argue that, of the competing views on offer, reflexive monism most closely follows the contours of ordinary experience, the findings of science, and common sense. Key words: Consciousness, reflexive, monism, dualism, reductionism, physicalism, functionalism, transparency, biological naturalism, phenomenal world, physical world, world itself, universe itself, brain, perceptual projection, phenomenal space, measured space, physical space, space perception, information, virtual reality, hologram, phenomenological internalism, phenomenological externalism, first person, third person, complementary What is Reflexive Monism? Monism is the view that the universe, at the deepest level of analysis, is one thing, or composed of one fundamental kind of stuff. -
The Refutation of Idealism Author(S): G
Mind Association The Refutation of Idealism Author(s): G. E. Moore Source: Mind, New Series, Vol. 12, No. 48 (Oct., 1903), pp. 433-453 Published by: Oxford University Press on behalf of the Mind Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2248251 . Accessed: 30/03/2011 03:28 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at . http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=oup. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Oxford University Press and Mind Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Mind. http://www.jstor.org NEW SERIES. NO. 48.] [OCTOBER, 1903. MIND A QUARTERLY REVIEW OF PSYCHOLOGYAND PHILOSOPHY I.-THE REFUTATION OF IDEALISM. -
DENNETT's CONSCIOUSNESS EXPLAINED: ITS CRITICS, and the CONTROVERSY OVER the “TRUE NATURE” of CONSCIOUSNESS BENJAMIN NEWMAN Swarthmore College
DENNETT'S CONSCIOUSNESS EXPLAINED: ITS CRITICS, AND THE CONTROVERSY OVER THE “TRUE NATURE” OF CONSCIOUSNESS BENJAMIN NEWMAN Swarthmore College Are zombies possible? They’re not just possible, they’re actual. We’re all zombies. (Dennett Consciousness Explained, 406) It would be an act of desperate intellectual dishonesty to quote this assertion out of context! (footnote to the above). IN CONSCIOUSNESS EXPLAINED, Daniel Dennett sets forth an extended sketch of what may, or may not, be an explanation of consciousness. The controversy regarding what, exactly, Dennett does explain, and what, if anything, he omits, arises both from profound and genuine disagreement with his views on the part of many contemporary philosophers and from ambiguities in the definitions of some key terms (e.g. “consciousness” and “explanation”). Between the fundamentally conflicting worldviews and behind the conceptual ambiguities, is there a real philosophical controversy to be found, or just a lot of empty rhetoric? I believe that there is a real and meaningful question lurking in the interplay between Dennett and his critics, and it will be my goal in this paper to bring that question to light and to frame it in such a way that it is clear what is at stake. What is at stake? Dennett’s approach to the problem of consciousness is firmly reductive and materialistic. He believes that the physical facts about the brain (and, to a lesser extent, about the context in which it finds itself) are sufficient to account for all of the facts about the mind, consciousness included. Some of Dennett’s critics would have ended that last sentence with the words “consciousness excluded,” and they do have a point. -
Constructing Time: Temporal Experience and Its Future Directed Aspects
The University of Adelaide: School of Humanities, Discipline of Philosophy Constructing Time: Temporal Experience and its Future Directed Aspects Diane Rose Stringer Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, February 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................... 1 ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... 4 DECLARATION ..................................................................................................... 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................ 6 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 7 1: DURATION AND THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ .............................................. 14 OVERVIEW OF CHAPTER ............................................................................................................... 14 THE CONCEPT OF THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ .............................................................15 DIFFERENT CONCEPTS OF THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ .........................................16 PHILOSOPHICAL CONCEPTS OF THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ ...............................16 PSYCHOLOGICAL CONCEPTS OF THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ ..............................17 CONCEPTS OF THE ‘SPECIOUS PRESENT’ IN PHYSICS ..........................................19 SOME ISSUES CONCERNING GUNKY PARTS .....................................................