Abstract
This chapter discusses how consciousness allows a discursive dimension of being-in-the-world. A wide spoke of perception and interpretation, or ‘seeing as’, is available through imaginative constructions of possible experience. We have highly articulate techniques of sharing these constructions through grammar and the cognitive structures of thought and imagination. We have developed a language using terms of evaluation to assess techniques of interaction with the world and each other. They allow us to reflect on and control our lives using the full resources of a neurocognitive system consisting of perception, cognition, and action. What Wittgenstein calls ‘grammar’ is an important part of this system and its function in social and cultural contexts. Intentionality is critical in this activity. It involves not only the ability to form and execute individual action plans but also to anticipate how others will act and a willingness to cooperate with them based on trust in their decision-making. Intentionality and other cognitive capacities are components of our practical and moral reasoning in going on and engaging with the world.
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Gillett, G., Glannon, W. (2023). Consciousness, Discourse, and Intention. In: The Neurodynamic Soul. New Directions in Philosophy and Cognitive Science. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-44951-2_6
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