(Abstract submitted to Consciousness Reframed 2008)
Much recent scientific discussion of consciousness takes the view that it is unified, i.e. our perceptions, memories, thoughts and beliefs come together in a singular phenomenal experience. This has led many researchers to seek a singular neural correlate of consciousness in the human brain, or some other mechanism to account for this unity. At the same time it is frequently assumed this unified experience is essentially rational — that the perceptions, thoughts and beliefs of which we are aware must be logically coherent in order for our mental life to make sense.
In this paper I will question both of these views. Using an example of my experience when studying a painting, I will argue that my perceptions and beliefs are as much fragmentary and contradictory as they are unified and rational, consisting of quite distinct percepts and often incompatible thoughts. I will suggest that this multiplicity and inconsistency contribute in some way to the peculiar vibratory sense of lived experience, and that the conscious mind might be better characterised as a ‘fractured unity’ — to use a contradictory term.
I envisage two main objections: First, it could be argued that although our minds may contain numerous percepts, thoughts and beliefs it is their co-occurrence that creates a unity, without which our experience would be incoherent. Second, that we cannot entertain contradictory thoughts while retaining a rational mind because this would conflict with the basic rules of logic.
In countering these objections I will suggest that the concept of unity as normally defined is at best ambiguous, perhaps even itself contradictory. Moreover, despite intensive searches as yet no evidence has been found of a unifying mechanism for consciousness in the brain.
I will also point out that the European philosophic tradition is ideologically biased towards the search for singular explanations of phenomena and against contradictions. This is less so in other traditions, such as those of India and China, where there is greater willingness to accept the explanatory potential of diverse and conflicting propositions. Learning from these traditions may help us to build a more universal model of mind and arrive at a deeper understanding of consciousness.
Finally, I will show that many works of art are particularly rich in fragmentary associations and conceptual contradictions, and so may offer profound insights into the nature of human mind.
