Sinking into consciousness: De-objectivizing
Sinking into consciousness: De-objectivizing

Summary/Abstract: This chapter addresses ‘consciousness unbecoming’: the process of one’s actions and thoughts ‘sinking into consciousness’ such that one customarily does what one does without the need to maintain awareness of doing so – Polanyi’s subsidiary awareness through habituation, sedimentation, ‘degeneracy’ of signs – even though in many cases such doing can be ‘raised to consciousness’ in a moment’s notice. David Sudnow’s account of his learning spontaneously to create jazz illustrates this process. It involves, so to speak, ‘re-enchantment’ and at the same time ‘de-objectivation’. In other words, it is a move against our long-cherished ‘objectivism’. Erwin Schrödinger is consulted with respect to this issue, which also bears on consciousness as One and the Many contained by Consciousness (the ‘Number Paradox’) as well as certain facets of Asian thought. Further illustration of this issue comes by way of Wheeler’s 20 Questions demonstration.

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