Narrating the self : Freud, Dennett and complexity theory
Date
2004
Authors
De Villiers, Tanya
Cilliers, Paul
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
South African Journal of Philosophy
Abstract
Adopting a materialist approach to the mind has far reaching implications for many presuppositions regarding the properties of the brain, including those that have traditionally been consigned to “the mental” aspect of human being. One such presupposition is the conception of the disembodied self. In this article we aim to account for the self as a material entity, in that it is wholly the result of the physiological functioning of the embodied brain. Furthermore, we attempt to account for the structure of the self by invoking the logic of the narrative. While our conception of narrative selfhood incorporates the work of both Freud and Dennett, we offer a critique of these two theorists and then proceed to amend their theories by means of complexity theory. We argue that the self can be characterised as a complex system, which allows us to account for the structure of the wholly material self.
Description
The original publication is available at http://ajol.info/index.php/
Keywords
Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939, Dennett, Daniel Clement, Complexity (Philosophy), Self (Philosophy), Discourse analysis, Narrative
Citation
De Villiers, T. & Cilliers, P. 2004. Narrating the self : Freud, Dennet and complexity theory. South African Journal of Philosophy, 23(1), 35-53. http://ajol.info/index.php/sajpem/article/view/31383