Abstract
This paper aims at examining a new assessment of a foundational paradigm for conducting science within the fields of neurology and its corresponding philosophy of mind. The main view examined is that of Alva Noë, professor of philosophy at UC Berkeley, and the view he forwards in his book Out of Our Heads. His main thesis rests on a critique of current scientific methodology and the foundational paradigm of functionalism, which he counters with a view from a more radical examination of what consciousness is in terms of living beings in their environments and the processes that animate these living beings. The author of this paper takes some issue with this process ontology that Noë forwards and critiques it based on its own premises and what follows from it, while later contrasting it with a focus on personal memory as Henri Bergson had described them in developing his metaphysical system.
Recommended Citation
Orlander, Sebastian
(2023)
"Memory, the Self and Why We Are Conscious (Or alternatively: Why We Don’t Do Consciousness),"
International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities: Vol. 4:
Iss.
2, Article 16.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/ijurca/vol4/iss2/16