Attention shapes our perception and relationship with the world, and how we attend to something influences what we find there.
Deficits in attention, such as in patients with right hemisphere strokes, can result in a loss of time perception and a narrow perspective on reality.
Deep dives
The Impact of Attention on Perception and Reality
The podcast episode explores the concept of attention and its profound influence on perception and our understanding of reality. Attention is not a passive process but an active engagement with the world, shaped by a combination of our faculties and previous experiences. By attending to something in a certain way, we may create a fixed representation of it, freezing it in time and space. This can lead to a narrowed perspective and a loss of vitality and wonder. The episode also discusses how deficits in attention, such as in patients with right hemisphere strokes, can result in denial or neglect of certain aspects of reality. Overall, attention plays a critical role in shaping our perception and relationship with the world.
The Complex Nature of Time and Devitalization
The podcast delves into the intricate relationship between time perception and brain functioning. It highlights the phenomenon of 'discronia,' where individuals struggle with understanding and experiencing time in a meaningful way. For example, patients with right hemisphere strokes may lose their sense of time, perceiving it as fragmented or juddering. This discussion leads to the examination of devitalization in contemporary society, where nature, sexuality, and everyday life are devalued and reduced to predictable commodities. The episode raises concerns about the impact of this devitalization on our connection with the world, emphasizing the need to tap into the wonder and awe that go beyond our limited models and conceptual frameworks.
The Implications of Right Hemisphere Dysfunction
The podcast sheds light on the effects of right hemisphere strokes and their impact on individuals' perception and communication. People with right hemisphere dysfunction may struggle with understanding non-verbal cues, humor, irony, and the deeper meanings behind language. This deficit can lead to denial or a lack of awareness of their own limitations, making rehabilitation more challenging. Additionally, the episode explores parallels between deficits in right hemisphere functioning and certain aspects of schizophrenia and autism, such as speaking in the third person or perceiving others as automata. The discussion offers insights into the complexities of brain functioning and its influence on social interaction and self-perception.
The Quest for Objectivity and Multiple Perspectives
The podcast delves into the concept of objectivity and its relationship to human perspectives. It challenges the notion of complete detachment and advocates for embracing multiple perspectives to achieve a more genuine form of objectivity. Instead of removing humanity from the equation, the episode suggests acknowledging the inherent subjectivity and values embedded in each viewpoint. By integrating diverse perspectives, including personal experiences and commitments, a more comprehensive understanding of the world can be attained. This nuanced approach to objectivity aims to balance the rigors of scientific inquiry with the richness of human experience.
In Part I of “The Matter With Things: Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World” Iain McGilchrist addresses the means to truth, in the sense of the faculties with which we are endowed for this task. He takes these to be: attention, perception, judgment, apprehension, emotional and social intelligence, cognitive intelligence and creativity. In each case, he looks at what either hemisphere contributes to the process.
We don’t stand a hope of diving into each but I felt we should share some of your writing on attention and Perception before we focus today on some of the more philosophical chapters such as intuition.
We touched on it on the last day, but for those who know your work! We will know how we attend to the work is of utmost importance to what and how we experience the world?
“Attention changes the world. How you attend to it changes what it is you find there.
What you find then governs the kind of attention you will think it appropriate to pay in the future.
And so it is that the world you recognise (which will not be exactly the same as my world) is ‘firmed up’ – and brought into being.
This raises a core question then, What is attention?
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