Knowledge and the Body-Mind Problem: In Defence of InteractionBased upon the Kenan Lectures that Karl Popper delivered at Emory University in 1969, Knowledge and the Body-Mind Problem raises problems connected with human freedom, creativity, rationality, and the relationship between human beings and their actions. These are what Popper calls big issues - too big for easy answers, but too important to be ignored. In these lectures, and in the discussions that follow them, Sir Karl develops a theory of body-mind interaction. This theory involves evolutionary emergence, human language, and that realm of autonomous products of the human mind which Popper calls World 3. According to Popper, consciousness emerged in the course of evolution as a kind of control system for the body, like a driver is a control system for a car. Objective knowledge - the kind of knowledge that is found in books and libraries - then emerged in the course of evolution as a higher level control system for the mind. Simply put, objective knowledge is the mind's control system for critical problem solving. In this way, full consciousness - the kind of consciousness that humans can have - is anchored in World 3 and is closely linked to human language, problems, theories, and criticism. And it is mainly through this use of objective knowledge as a control system for critical problem solving that we are able to exercise our freedom, creativity, and rationality - first by making contributions, like science books and works of art, to World 3; and then by using these contributions to bring about changes in Worlds 1 and 2. The Kenan Lectures were well-attended and provoked lively discussions. This book is published in the same informal language in which they were originally delivered and so can be easily understood by a general audience. |
Contents
| 1 | |
2 The Autonomy of World 3 | 24 |
3 World 3 and Emergent Evolution | 47 |
4 Description Argument and Imagination | 79 |
5 Interaction and Consciousness | 105 |
6 The Self Rationality and Freedom | 129 |
Editors afterword | 143 |
| 145 | |
| 147 | |
| 149 | |
Other editions - View all
Knowledge and the Body-mind Problem: In Defence of Interaction Karl Raimund Popper Limited preview - 1994 |
Knowledge and the Body-mind Problem: In Defence of Interaction Karl R. Popper No preview available - 1996 |
Common terms and phrases
actually Alfred Tarski amoeba animal languages argument arise become behavioural patterns belong to world biological body-mind problem Bolzano conjecture correspondence course critical Darwin Descartes develop discovered discovery discussion dispositions dream ecological niche emergent evolution environment epiphenomenalism error elimination especially evolutionary example exist exosomatic explain fact false formulation framework full consciousness functions of language genetic entrenchment genetically based Hegel hereditary entrenchment Hesiod higher functions human language human mind idea important individual instruments interaction invention Karl Popper kind lecture lower forms mean metalanguage monistic mutation natural selection number system objective knowledge objective truth organism P₁ P₂ perhaps philosophers physical things Popper possible prime numbers programme music proof pseudo-problem Questioner rational right angles Sir Karl solipsism solution solve speak spearhead statement story subjective sense survive Tarski's tetradic schema thesis third world three worlds true twin primes unconscious understand world 3 objects