See The Sword and Ideas.
Let us conclude this philosophical trilogy of posts by referring to a third author (see image). Alan Moore suggested in conversation that artistic creation is magic. The creative/magical process is:
(i) nothing;
(ii) an idea in the creator's head;
(iii) the expression of that idea through the raw materials which, for a writer, start with his language;
(iv) a tangible, material artifact, e.g., a book, on sale to the public.
The artifact is the material embodiment of the idea or concept which, I think, was generated by a process that began in a material brain. Moore was trying to understand the nature of consciousness so he might by now have formulated a different view of the role of the brain. But, in any case, the idea originates somewhere in the mind and/or brain of a human being and is embodied in the raw materials of the English language, paper, ink etc. So I cannot find any conceptual space for Artos' notion of an embodied concept or tangible thought that is not physical matter.
Kaor, Paul!
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree our physical brains are made of physical material, I don't believe our ideas and thoughts are material. I can think about physical things but my thoughts are not material.
Sean
Sean,
DeleteI suggest that thoughts are neither merely identical with processes in the brain nor ontologically distinct from them. When organismic sensitivity became conscious sensation, that was a qualitative transformation. A new quality cannot be understood reductively.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
DeleteBut I still don't believe thoughts or ideas can be material. I can thinking about a physical object, such as a loaf of bread. But my thoughts are not THAT bread.
Sean
Sean,
DeleteBy a mere "physical object," we mean an object that has material properties of mass, volume etc but that lacks mental properties, most basically awareness. The emergence of mental properties is a qualitative change within organisms. So, yes, your thoughts are not a "physical object," in this sense.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
DeleteIt's good to sometimes come to an OCCASIONAL agreement! (Smiles) And I think this ties in with the mind/body problem.
Sean
Sean,
DeleteThis is the mind-body question. What is the relationship between conscious and unconscious states of being?
Paul.