Some years ago Dennett gave a talk on consciousness. He began by saying, "Some people have said that my book should be called 'Conscious Explained Away'. Ha Ha". Where the laughter was insincere and ironic. --- Frank C. Wimberly 140 Calle Ojo Feliz, Santa Fe, NM 87505
505 670-9918 Santa Fe, NM On Mon, Jan 13, 2025, 2:28 PM Jochen Fromm <j...@cas-group.net> wrote: > Good summary. Dennett's books are popular because he has done > ordinary-language philosophy like his adviser Ryle, as he writes in his > chapter about his time in Oxford. His main trick is to do sharp attacks on > theories which he has identified as false. > > His "consciousness explained" book for example does not really explain it. > Like his mentor Gilbert Ryle he says what it is not. Ryle says there is no > ghost in the machine, Dennett argues there is no central self, no observer > in the Cartesian theater. > > His "freedom evolves" book is similar. He does not really explain how a > free will can emerge, he explains what it is not: it is not action under > duress. Persons who have free will are not forced to act like they do. > > > > I guess Dennett's ordinary-language philosophy can also be found here at > FRIAM occasionally - one aspect I like about the group. > > > -J. > > > > -------- Original message -------- > From: Pieter Steenekamp <piet...@randcontrols.co.za> > Date: 1/13/25 9:02 AM (GMT+01:00) > To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group <friam@redfish.com> > > Subject: Re: [FRIAM] I've been thinking > > I've always been drawn to the sharp mind of Daniel Dennett, and the idea > of diving into his autobiography feels like meeting an old friend for the > first time. As I've been on a bit of a biography kick lately, adding > Dennett's personal journey to my reading list just feels right. > > I love the communal aspect of our local library, and I'm planning to see > if they can snag Dennett's autobiography for me. It's probably not on their > shelves, but the magic of inter-library loans could come through for me. > There's something special about the anticipation of waiting for a book > you're eager to read. > > To brush up on Dennett's fascinating ideas, I asked Grok to give me the > lowdown on his thoughts about consciousness, free will, religion, and > evolution. Here's what I learned. (My Prompt was "please give me a > comprehensive view on daniel dennitt's views on consciousness, free will, > religion and evolution"): > > Daniel Dennett, a prominent philosopher, cognitive scientist, and writer, > has made significant contributions to discussions on consciousness, free > will, religion, and evolution. Here's a comprehensive overview of his views > on each of these topics: > > Consciousness > Heterophenomenology: Dennett advocates for an approach he calls > "heterophenomenology," where one takes the subject's reports of their > consciousness at face value but then interprets these reports from a > third-person perspective. This method aims to be scientific and objective > about subjective experiences. > Multiple Drafts Model: In his book "Consciousness Explained," Dennett > proposes the "multiple drafts" model of consciousness, where consciousness > is not a single, central stream but rather the result of numerous parallel > processes in the brain. There is no single place where consciousness > happens; instead, different parts of the brain produce different "drafts" > of what's going on, and we experience consciousness as these drafts are > distributed and revised. > Illusionism: Dennett is often classified as an illusionist about > consciousness, arguing that what we think of as phenomenal consciousness > (the subjective, qualitative aspect of experience) is an illusion or, more > precisely, a construct of cognitive processes. He believes that the hard > problem of consciousness is a pseudo-problem because once we understand the > brain's workings, we'll see there's nothing left to explain. > > Free Will > Compatibilism: Dennett supports a form of compatibilism, where free will > can coexist with determinism. He argues that while our actions might be > determined by prior states of the universe, we can still be morally > responsible for them if our decisions are based on our desires, character, > and rational deliberation. > "Freedom Evolves": In his book "Freedom Evolves," he suggests that free > will has evolved through natural selection, where organisms develop the > ability to respond flexibly to their environments. Free will, for Dennett, > is about the ability to act according to one's own reasons and motivations, > not about transcending causality. > > Religion > The Brights Movement: Dennett, along with Richard Dawkins and others, has > been associated with the "Brights" movement, an attempt to reframe atheists > and agnostics with a positive term. > Memes and Religion: He views religion through the lens of memetics, a > theory where cultural ideas (memes) propagate and evolve similarly to > genes. In "Breaking the Spell," he argues that religion should be studied > scientifically, questioning why it persists and how it affects human > behavior. > Critical of Faith: Dennett is critical of religion's role in society, > often highlighting what he sees as irrational beliefs or the potential harm > they can cause. He advocates for a secular society based on reason and > science, though he does not discount the social benefits some religious > practices might offer. > > Evolution > Darwin's Dangerous Idea: His book by this name explores the implications > of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, which he describes as > a "universal acid" that eats through just about every traditional concept, > from biology to philosophy. > Algorithimic View: Dennett emphasizes an algorithmic view of life where > evolution is seen as an algorithmic process - blind, automatic, and devoid > of foresight or design. > Critique of Intelligent Design: He has been a vocal critic of intelligent > design, arguing that it's not only scientifically unfounded but also > philosophically problematic, as it often appeals to a 'god of the gaps' for > explanations. > > Dennett's work is characterized by its interdisciplinary approach, > combining insights from biology, philosophy, computer science, and > cognitive science to address complex questions about human nature and > existence. His views often provoke debate, particularly because of his > willingness to challenge traditional or intuitive understandings of these > topics. > > On Sun, 12 Jan 2025 at 21:37, Jochen Fromm <j...@cas-group.net> wrote: > >> The library finally has notified me that Daniel Dennett's autobiography >> "I've been thinking" is ready to borrow. So I went to the library and got >> it. As expected an interesting book. He writes about his time in Oxford and >> his mentor Gilbert Ryle, his approach to philosophy and his little life >> hacks. >> >> He explains for example how he used to stay awake in boring talks: he >> waits until all characters of the alphabet subsequently appear in the talk >> and then writes down the word. First he waits for a word containing A, then >> for a word containing B, etc. If he reaches Z he starts again at A. He says >> J, Q und Z would be rare... >> >> As you know Daniel has written a number of fascinating books. Dennett's >> law of philosophy for me is that for every big, fundamental question in >> philosophy there is at least one Daniel Dennett book: >> >> + "Consciousnes Explained" (1991) about consciousness >> >> + "Darwin's Dangerous Idea" (1995) about evolution >> >> + "Freedom Evolves" (2003) about free will >> >> + "Breaking the spell" (2006) about religion >> >> We have discussed all four questions here in FRIAM as well: >> consciousness, evolution, free will and religion. The conclusions I came >> too (after many discussions here and countless visits to the library) are: >> >> + For subjective consciousness humans have built tools to solve the "what >> it is like to be" question of subjective consciousness. The tools are >> simply the cinemas and movie theaters which show the stuff that Hollywood >> produces. Recently the GoPro cameras which show what it is like to be a >> hero fulfill a similar purpose >> >> >> + Regarding the spell of religion we have built tools too. Churches, >> mosques, synagogues and temples are places where the magic of religion is >> used to form groups out of loosely coupled individuals. And the magic turns >> out to be gene expression, as I tried to explain in the book from 5 years >> ago >> >> >> + For the question of free will we have invented tools too. Mainly >> language and "to be or not to be" thinking of course, but as trivial as it >> may sound, ordinary things such as notes and calendars help us to remember >> what we want to do, thereby guiding our decision making >> >> I have the feeling that the solutions to the biggest and most elusive >> questions can be found in the most ordinary common things, hiding in >> plain sight. Would you come to different conclusions in one of big >> questions after our discussions here? >> >> -J. >> >> >> .- .-.. .-.. / ..-. --- --- - . .-. ... / .- .-. . / .-- .-. --- -. --. / >> ... --- -- . / .- .-. . / ..- ... . ..-. ..- .-.. >> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv >> Fridays 9a-12p Friday St. Johns Cafe / Thursdays 9a-12p Zoom >> https://bit.ly/virtualfriam >> to (un)subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com >> FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ >> archives: 5/2017 thru present >> https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ >> 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >> > .- .-.. .-.. / ..-. --- --- - . .-. ... / .- .-. . / .-- .-. --- -. --. / > ... --- -- . / .- .-. . / ..- ... . ..-. ..- .-.. > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Fridays 9a-12p Friday St. Johns Cafe / Thursdays 9a-12p Zoom > https://bit.ly/virtualfriam > to (un)subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > archives: 5/2017 thru present > https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ > 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >
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