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From the introduction to the book review: "The debate regarding predictive coding has been going on for over a year now. The first philosophical traces of this debate are Andy Clark’s (2013a) and Jakob Hohwy’s works. The latter has recently published the first philosophical monograph on the subject of a predictive account of the mind."
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From the book review: "S. L. Marratto’s excellent book explores the resources for thinking about the subjectivity that comes from reading Maurice Merelau-Ponty. Interested particularly in Merelau-Ponty’s notion of intercorporiety (which denotes specific dimensions of anonymity characterising the personal body experience that lies beneath explicit self-consciousness), Marratto argues that no account of cognition (or self-consciousness and language) can be sufficient without the appreciation of the intercorporeal character of subjectivity. In that sense, drawing upon Merleau-Ponty’s philosophy, the book aims to demonstrate (1) the importance of the concept of intercorporeity in deepening our understanding of the fundamentally intersubjective character of human self-consciousness, and argues that (2) the intercorporeal character of human subjectivity is resistant to any form of reductionism, which is often found in current interdisciplinary cognitive science. In that sense, it would be however a mistake to assume that The Intercorporeal Self is of great importance solely to the history of philosophy-centered research. In his book, Marratto tackles important contemporary issues found in ecological, embodied, enactive or simply "situated" approaches to cognition."
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The text has two parts: historical and a systematical. In the first one, main theses on subjectivity are briefly traced throughout the entire history of Western philosophy (from Plato to Heidegger), which is generally determined as ‘self-empowering of subjectivity’. Greater attention is given to early German philosophical Romanticism. In the second part, the structure of subjectivity is sketched. Subjectivity is acomplex notion, the descriptive determinations of which are personhood, individuality and privacy. What makes these to be the instances of subjectivity – is the self-consciousness. In general the text deals with the main question: What is subjectivity, and what is its relationship with self-consciousness and self-knowledge?
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The Constitution of Time in Husserl. One of Husserl’s fundamental idea is that time is not an object and is not given to knowledge as a simple object. Being involved in the constitution of the flow of consciousness, time cannot be analysed like other objects of knowledge. Consciousness itself is structured in a temporal way. In the absolute flow of consciousness, this temporality has a synthetic unity with the rest of the intentional features of consciousness. It represents for Husserl a passive synthesis that characterizes the intentional life of the transcendental subjectivity. This specific form of temporality that characterizes the transcendental life of the subject has a constitutive dimension that we will discuss.
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A Commentary upon Gadamer’s Interpretation of Hegel. In light of a renewed scholarly undertaking of the Hegel‒Gadamer connection, the purpose of the present paper is to carry further this much needed re-approach of the issue by stressing yet another one of its aspects. I am referring to the scholarly insights that Gadamer himself provides us with in his interpretation of Hegel. Since many of Gadamer’s essays on Hegel are actually studies originally meant as contributions to major journals dealing with Hegel’s work, my claim is that we can retrieve from them answers to many ongoing debates in the Hegel scholarship. I will insist on only one of these issues, namely Gadamer’s account of Hegel’s relation to metaphysics.
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The paper examines the Estimaverunt Indi, one of the medieval most relevant geomantic treatises which is currently edited in the framework of the project «Foreseeing Events and Dominating Nature: Models of Operative Rationality and the Circulation of Knowledge in the Arab, Hebrew and Latin Middle Ages». Before dealing with the treatise, however, some general issues regarding geomancy are discussed. In chapter 1, in particular, the geomantic technique is described very concisely. Chapter 2 and 3 give a few historical indications concerning its scientific status, at same time stressing its differences from astrology. Chapter 4 raises the crucial issue of the relationship of the Estimaverunt Indi with the famous Étienne Tempier’s condemnation in 1277 and proposes a solution to this question. The final chapter suggests a few working hypotheses for future research on geomancy.
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We interpret reality, our experience, identity and existence by means of language responsible for communicative competence. This competence is determined by science and human emotions, or, heart. A cultural game is constantly being played on the line between the ability to move in the world among people and emotions of the heart. Many authorities aspire to gain control over this game (to wield the „sceptre” of power), thus giving it a specific dimension. The role of language is to be able to control these games. So great, however, is the power of language, that the one who is the strongest in social communication resorts to seizing this power for themselves; their imperious aspirations being reflected in the language they employ. Also an individual strives in his/her way to find a place among the masters of social communication. Yet, often, he/she is perceived as an usurper. However, the “usurpers” of power over social communication also exist in wide social circles, which definitely (but whether truly?) weakens the arguments held by the individual. The question mark generalizes what the author of this text, in view of his personal experience with a literary and a plastic language, has to say in defense of, and in an attempt to invest with significance such “arguments” in communication as individual sincerity and veracity.
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The article is an attempt to consider a place for a subject in perspective of post-anthropocentric point of view. Post-anthropocentrism is a heavyweight issue of the posthumanism, a critical theory, which is based on rejection of human domination over the world and which considers human as a part of life-itself. However, is human capable of rejecting the anthropocentric point of view? Is overstepping the Anthropos even possible? What we can do to not allow the post-anthropocentrism become one of anthropocentric instruments of power? Author tries to answer these questions referring to feminist critical theories - Adrienne Rich's politics of location and Donna Haraway's situated knowledge. It seems that, the proper question is rather, could human beings become a part of life-itself, remaining themselves in the same time.
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The text is seeking to delve into and expose different types and veiled meanings of reasons in Descartes' philosophy. As is usually conceived, whether epistemologically or metaphysically, there is no more than one dualism in Descartes: the dualism between body and mind. In the process of meditative discourse, however, there seems to be some hierarchical grading of what is habitually called reason/mind. Since he managed to »smuggle« the so-called »pure« reason by virtue of the uncontestable faith in reason, lumen naturale, he needed to construct and substantiate such a thing that would in all possible manners be distinguishable from the corporeal. Creating an insurmountable gap between these two, Descartes despondently yearned to bridge it (throughout his entire philosophy), thus constituting a new one, seldom apprehended, duality. That is, the fundamental duality between »pure« reason, the »unmixed« holder of the eternal truths and innate ideas, the subject of cogito, and sensus communis, the pineal gland, the fleshy site where the soul resides. This duality is crucial to understanding of Cartesian dualism, as he himself appeared to have solved it by dint of it. This text, therefore, aims to be an exegesis, though not the resolute one, of the given problem.
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In this paper the author deals with contemporary change of epistemological paradigm and elementary assumptions of establishing a constructionist paradigm. Following the stances taken by Ernst von Glasersfeld, the paper analyzes the basic normative and physiological, i.e. genetic assumptions of human thought as interpreted by Jean Piaget. Cognitive development is moving towards ever higher forms of the mental balance which represents a progressive adaptation to reality, motivated by genuine mental needs of solving intellectual problems. Piaget introduces the cognitive scheme in which a problem presents destabilization of a previously achieved balance, and the solution restores the balance, but this time at a higher level, since it was not possible under previous circumstances. The mechanism by which this transition occurs Piaget calls reflective abstraction.
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In La Recherche de la vérité, Malebranche succeeds Descartes in entitling the affections of pleasure and pain to a practical role. However, he also speaks of instinct as “knowledge” and “proof”. This vocabulary is all the more surprising as it keeps opposing knowledge, based on ideas, to feeling, which only consists of obscure perceptions. It will thus be about examining the cognitive range that affectivity receives in this philosophy yet known for its rationalism and its intellectualism.
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The article explores the concept of gender and gender roles in a spiritual book titled Jak si uvařit (vlastní) vesmír (How to cook up (your own) universe) by Kamila ‘Kamu’ Chadimová, a famous Czech chef and Instagram influencer. As the book is based on the worldview of Alternative (New Age) Spirituality, a full understanding of its concept of gender and gender roles needs to be put in the context of Alternative Spirituality’s core doctrinal traits. The article emphasizes the importance of the concepts of (spiritual) energy and (spiritual) holism as two of the most important traits of Alternative Spirituality and examines them in the context of Kamu’s life story.
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The issue of the relation between the mind and the brain is known as one of the most discussed problem of the philosophy of mind. The recent development of neuroscience contributed significantly to animate the discussion on this subject. This article is one voice in this discussion. It contains a critical analysis of some arguments in favor of the theory which claims that the mind is identical to the brain. Moreso, it is argued, that the observed correlations between physical and mental events cannot be treated as a proof that there is no difference between the mind and the brain.
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This essay embarks on a thorough exploration of Edmund Husserl’s seminal contributions to the philosophical discourse on consciousness, with a particular focus on the dynamics of conscious decisions within the framework of phenomenology. By delving into Husserl’s nuanced examination of consciousness—its temporal structure, the nature of self-awareness, and the foundational concept of intentionality—the analysis reveals the intricate ways in which Husserl posits the transcendental ego as the nexus of meaning, judgment, and perception. The discussion illuminates how Husserl’s theory of intentionality and the intentional act’s matter and quality serve as the cornerstone for understanding the will’s engagement with the world. Through a detailed exposition of Husserl’s ideas on the phenomenological reduction, the essay articulates the active role of consciousness in constituting reality and the ethical dimensions underpinning the exercise of free will. The paper argues that Husserl’s insights into conscious decision-making challenge conventional views by framing free will within the contexts of knowledge, ethical deliberation, and the ego’s autonomy. This essay contributes to the ongoing dialogue between phenomenology and contemporary philosophy of mind by highlighting Husserl’s profound impact on our understanding of consciousness, agency, and the existential significance of human decisions.
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The article aims to explore the roots of Deleuzean body beyond the trad- itional arguments of the philosophy of the body. In this context, firstly, I discuss the attitude of Cartesian dualism toward the body, and its consequences, which form the beginning of early modern philosophy. At the same time, they reflect the old, traditional views on the body. Those visions describe the body as a corpse in itself. With Spinoza and later Nietzsche the body, and soul/mind dualism is replaced with monism and perspectivism. It is from this perspective that the question of “what can a body do?” is posed. Drawing on the philosophies of Spinoza and Nietzsche, Deleuze describes the body as a vast principle of potentiality. Such a body constant- ly appears as the dimension of the multiplicity that is self-constructing. Therefore, in this article, while discussing how the attitude toward the concept of the body changed from Descartes to Deleuze on the ontological level, I simultaneously try to demonstrate the capabilities of such a new understanding of the body.
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In this paper, I present a novel objection to Chalmers’s “master argument” against the privileged strategy of ‘type B’ physicalists to account for the explanatory gap (the “phenomenal concepts strategy”). Specifically, I argue that the second horn of the master argument gets wrong why zombies cannot have our epistemic situation with regard to consciousness. Zombies cannot have a kind of mental state that we have. If something must have all of our psychological attributes to share our epistemic situation, then zombies cannot serve the purpose of the second horn of the dilemma. By way of background, I begin by briefly outlining a related argument against physicalism, also advanced by D. Chalmers – the “conceivability argument.” I highlight some of the primary challenges with this argument and present additional criticisms. Finally, through a brief examination of panprotopsychism, I consider what lies ahead if Chalmers’s arguments are conceded. I conclude that the phenomenal concept strategy is a sound explanation for why the conceivability of zombies likely does not imply their metaphysical possibility.
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Starting from the consultation of the materials preserved in the Italian-Romanian cultural archive of Rosa Del Conte, the present study aims to seek an answer to the question on which and how much control Rosa Del Conte has on the self-image that the archive conveys.
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The question as to what is philosophy invites us to look from a number of sometimes opposing perspectives. 1) The question of what philosophy is should find the complement of what it is for you, and what your philosophy is. A reliable answer may be unattainable for many. 2) An assessment of who a great philosopher is could only be made by a philosopher equal to him. There is doubt about the list of great philosophers found in philosophy textbooks. A practical solution: those who have influenced for centuries, to whom all eras refer, are included among the great philosophers. 3) Philosophy is the art of thinking. It cannot be taught in school, which is designed to provide practical skills. School is not the place where thought is born. For thinking can be born in refraining from action, in silence. 4) The elitism of philosophy is not only an opinion about Martin Heidegger’s thought, among other accusations formulated by Jürgen Habermas. Similarly, Plato in his school wanted to form an elite of those who see and understand more. 5) The object of philosophy is the totality of what is, talking about everything. This raises methodological problems. All the more so because philosophical thought wants to transcend these limits, wants to reach beyond all that is given. To enter virgin, uncharted territory. 6) The sin of philosophers, as Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, is the cult of eternalisation. This cult mummifies. Glorification itself is such a killing. In philosophical thinking, the absolutisation of values must be avoided. For it takes us beyond life, beyond what is: it is the deprivation of life. 7) Life in its vital element is slipping away. Its affirmation means saying goodbye to Parmenides, to “take pleasure in uncertainty rather than certainty” (Nietzsche). Philosophy conceives itself as a lofty and serious thing. It has no room for humour, for laughter, as Nietzsche demanded. 8) Since everything has its end, philosophy too experiences its end. The memory of its great history remains, but it only confirms the irreversibility of the passing of the old worlds. Even the best reading of Plato’s dialogues will not bring back that lost world. 9) The task of philosophy today is to rethink the nature of finitude. It has been thought of as a negation of the infinite, as a relative concept without its own autonomous content. Discovering another way of thinking, looking, anticipating another way of understanding finitude, is the real challenge.
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This paper discusses the resources for deconstruction offered by cognitive science, drawing inspiration from David Gunkel’s work on the topic (Deconstruction, MIT Press 2021). The gesture of deconstruction is seen as having a positive impact on the development of this interdisciplinary field by challenging misleading dichotomies and examining its underlying assumptions, such as the symmetry of integration.
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