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Some reflections on the possibility of naturalizing the mind

Author

Listed:
  • Andrej Ule

    (Faculty of Arts – University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia)

Abstract

The article examines whether it is possible to provide a coherent naturalist account of the emergence of the mind (spirit), construed as a plethora of mental abilities that are present in living beings. I analyze Bateson’s information-system theory of mind, Peirce’s theory of semiotics, and some biosemiotic proposals. All of these conceptions fail to provide a plausible theoretical explanation of the emergence of the mind, particularly (i) the emergence of the interpreters of signs, and (ii) the emergence of the experiential perspective out of the non-living nature. I argue for a hypothesis based on the idea of the trans-objective perspectivity dimension, i.e. the real possibility of acquiring a more or less distinctive experiential perspective in the form of like-to-be-X for all sufficiently developed natural entities. Taking on an experiential perspective also entails a greater sensitivity to not only actual, but also potential events, e.g. a greater sensitivity to everything that can be “useful” or “harmful” to the system in question.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrej Ule, 2015. "Some reflections on the possibility of naturalizing the mind," Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems - scientific journal, Croatian Interdisciplinary Society Provider Homepage: http://indecs.eu, vol. 13(4), pages 501-510.
    • Handle: RePEc:zna:indecs:v:13:y:2015:i:4:p:501-510
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    File URL: http://indecs.eu/2015/indecs2015-pp501-510.pdf
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Olga Markic, 2015. "Naturalism and the experiential perspective," Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems - scientific journal, Croatian Interdisciplinary Society Provider Homepage: http://indecs.eu, vol. 13(4), pages 534-539.
    2. Laszlo Ropolyi, 2015. "Representations and inhomogeneous beings," Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems - scientific journal, Croatian Interdisciplinary Society Provider Homepage: http://indecs.eu, vol. 13(4), pages 540-547.
    3. Sebastjan Voros, 2015. "Mind in nature, nature in mind: a reply to ule," Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems - scientific journal, Croatian Interdisciplinary Society Provider Homepage: http://indecs.eu, vol. 13(4), pages 511-524.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    mind (spirit); information system; semiosis; biosemantics; experiential perspective;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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