George Lakoff : How Metaphors Structure Reality

[DocWatts]

Interesting discussion with the cognitive linguist and philosopher George Lakoff, which explores the epistemological implications of: how the mind is inherently embodied, how most thought is unconscious, and how our metaphors structure the conceptual system we use to navigate reality.

His philosophy is in many ways an extension of the embodied theory of mind as articulated by Evan Thompson, Fransisco Varella, and Eleanor Rosch, which itself is an attempt to build a bridge between cognitive science and the contemplative practices of Buddhism.

What's particularly interesting about Lakoff is the alternative he offers to radical forms of both Objectivism and Subjectivism, and how he uses this to deconstruct systems of epistemology grounded a-priori reasoning which has been at the heart of Western Philosophical traditions dating back to the time of Plato.

 

Edited August 31, 2021 by DocWatts

[flyingguitarist]

why just western philosophy , why not eastern philosophies ? Even they have bodies too.. thorugh which they make metaphors

 

I wonder how gene editing tech like crispr would affect all such philosophies

[DocWatts]

6 hours ago, flyingguitarist said:

why just western philosophy , why not eastern philosophies ? Even they have bodies too.. thorugh which they make metaphors

Because generally and for the most part it's been in the West, rather than in the East, that the epistomological error of disembodied mind has become entrenched, largely thanks to Cartesian mind-body dualism and later materialist paradigms.

Also worth pointing out that meditative practices didn't take hold in the West to nearly the same extent as they have in the East, which I suspect is a major reason behind how the myth of disembodied mind has managed to survive over the centuries.

Edited May 29, 2022 by DocWatts

[mostly harmless]

thank you for sharing. worth a look