Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind - The Julian Jaynes Society Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Disentangling Inner Speech, Self-dialogue, and Auditory Hallucinations: The Mind Is a Machine for Sociopsychological Communication

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten. Read by Michael R. Jacobs (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.theungoogleable.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@VoidDenizen⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠).

How are inner speech, self-dialogue, auditory imagery, and hallucinations related? And what exactly are hallucinations? Some have suggested that hallucinations are caused by a monitoring defect in inner speech (also termed inner voice, silent speech, subvocal speech, covert speech, self talk, internal monologue, verbal thought, etc.) (Fernyhough, The Voices Within, 2016). Such a claim, however, ignores the overwhelming evidence concerning hallucinations before about 1000 BCE. Any theoretical linkage must take into account one crucial datum: hallucinations were central to normal sociopsychological functioning. Hallucinations, which were ubiquitous in the ancient world, were a mechanism for social control (until about the first millennium BCE). The “monitoring defect” hypothesis confuses matters: Rather than hallucinations resulting from a problem with inner speech, inner speech is a type of watered-down hallucination. This is why, arguably, for some an inner voice possesses agent-like properties or is accompanied by a felt presence, suggesting vestigial bicameral mentality.

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/2021/10/26/disentangling-inner-speech-self-dialogue-and-auditory-hallucinations/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Consciousness, Cognition, and Free Will: A Jaynesian Perspective

An Interview by Vinay Kolhatkar with Julian Jaynes Society Founder and Executive Director Marcel Kuijsten.

Marcel Kuijsten discusses the uniquely human consciousness from a Jaynesian perspective with the show's host, Vinay Kolhatkar. Also covered are free will and cognition, the cognitive explosion of Ancient Greece, pre-conceptual ancient cultures prevalent today, the human disposition to obeying authorial voices, and the enormous canvas for future research.

Courtesy of the Savvy Street Show (https://www.thesavvystreet.com/).

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/tAE5WL5XvDQ

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Consciousness Is a Cultural Add-on

A Product of History Not Reducible to Neurology, Conscious Interiority Is Like Mathematics

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten. Read by Michael R. Jacobs (⁠www.theungoogleable.com⁠, ⁠www.youtube.com/@VoidDenizen⁠).

When we hear the word “consciousness” many of us, in a knee-jerk manner, associate it with neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, or something physically inborn. We also link it to perceptual or cognitive processes that are non-historical and non-cultural. However, according to Jaynesian psychology, these are all misleading assumptions, since consciousness is not necessary for perception, learning, and reasoning. It is extra-genetic and a product of sociocultural forces and it entered the historical scene relatively recently, about three millennia ago. Indeed, as a culturally-configured form of knowledge, consciousness is closer to mathematics or other domains of learning. Consciousness is a very special form of knowledge, of course, but an array of socially-acquired ideas nevertheless. Let’s consider how mathematics is similar to consciousness.

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/julian-jaynes-theory/consciousness-is-a-cultural-add-on/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠.

Jaynesian Therapeutics and the Self-healing Mind: Part 2

Lessons from Hallucinations, Hypnosis, and Meditation

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten. Read by Michael R. Jacobs (www.theungoogleable.com, www.youtube.com/@VoidDenizen).

In Part 1 we looked at how something we take for granted — consciousness — is actually an active ingredient that can aid in the repair of the mind for certain mental disorders. In this Part we explore how anomalous psychological experiences hold lessons for how consciousness relates to the self-healing mind. Various manifestations of mentality — ordinary consciousness, hallucinations, hypnosis, meditation — are like a colorful tapestry with different patterns but woven together with the same threads. The challenge is disentangling and isolating the threads so as to understand the psychological processes behind these phenomena, especially since this can help understand the therapeutic benefits of certain mental exercises.

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/julian-jaynes-theory/jaynesian-therapeutics-and-the-self-healing-mind-part-2-of-2/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠.

Jaynesian Therapeutics and the Self-healing Mind: Part 1

Harnessing the Active Ingredients of Psychotherapy

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten. Read by Michael R. Jacobs (www.theungoogleable.com). His YouTube channel is www.youtube.com/@VoidDenizen.

It is an interesting fact that the success rates for different psychotherapies are about the same. This is why researchers have searched for “common factors” that facilitate the healing process. The goal, then, should be to discover the common “active ingredients” of all therapies, e.g., the personality of the therapist, the “therapeutic alliance.” Could consciousness itself constitute a common factor that can be cultivated in order to repair troubled minds? Could consciousness underlie the effectiveness of the self-healing mind?

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/julian-jaynes-theory/jaynesian-therapeutics-and-the-self-healing-mind-part-1-of-2/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠www.julianjaynes.org⁠.

Appreciating Other Facets of Jaynesian Psychology: Part 2

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten.

In Part 1 of “Appreciating Other Facets of Jaynesian Psychology” I began a discussion of aspects of Jaynesian psychology that if appreciated, add depth and perhaps persuasiveness to Jaynes’s arguments. I focused on how understanding Jaynes investigation of how language has constructed conscious interiority. Here I introduce some more facets of Jaynesian psychology. I suggest that given the richness and breadth of Jaynes’s thinking, we need to propose a “Jaynesian intellectual paradigm” that goes beyond mere psychological theorizing.

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/julian-jaynes-theory/appreciating-other-facets-of-jaynesian-psychology-part-2/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at www.julianjaynes.org.

Appreciating Other Facets of Jaynesian Psychology: Part 1

By Brian J. McVeigh

Produced by Marcel Kuijsten.

Jaynesian psychology can be distilled down to two major claims. First, until about three millennia ago individual behavior was governed by a different neurocultural arrangement called bicameral mentality: the right hemisphere generated audiovisual hallucinations interpreted as supernatural visitations (ancestors, chiefs, gods) that governed the left hemisphere (the “mortal” side). But bicameral mentality was no match for social transformations — expanding demographics, more complex political economic systems, mass migration, and technological innovations such as writing and bronze and ironworking.  This brings us to Jaynes’s second claim. What he called consciousness, or subjective introspectable self-awareness, replaced bicameral mentality. This cognitive upgrade was a cultural invention, not a bioevolutionary development.

Like crowning towers built upon lower tiers and structures, Jaynes’s two claims rest on a number of interlocking theories that deserve attention. This is because unfortunately, reviewers, commentators, and critics often fail to see the subtlety of Jaynes’s arguments. Even critiques that are sympathetic to Jaynes’s claims often miss the nuances and richness of his theorizing, so it is worth exploring some of the chambers making up Jaynes’s intellectual edifice.

Read the complete text from this episode:

https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/julian-jaynes-theory/appreciating-other-facets-of-jaynesian-psychology-part-1/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠https://www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠​.

Fact Checking Erik Hoel’s Comments on Julian Jaynes's Theory in "The World Behind the World: Consciousness, Free Will, and the Limits of Science."

A brief discussion between Marcel Kuijsten and Brian J. McVeigh, fact checking Erik Hoel's recent comments on Julian Jaynes's theory in his book "The World Behind the World: Consciousness, Free Will, and the Limits of Science."

They discuss a number of different problems with Erik Hoel's understanding of Julian Jaynes's theory. They also explain the critique of Jaynes's theory raised by Hoel (and originally made by Ned Block) referred to as the "use/mention error," and how that critique was later addressed by Julian Jaynes, Daniel Dennett, and Jan Sleutels.

Read the blog post: https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/fact-checks/fact-checking-erik-hoel/

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠https://www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠​.

References from the video:

Brian J. McVeigh, "Fact Checking Erik Hoel’s “The World Behind the World: Consciousness, Free Will, and the Limits of Science,” August 6, 2023. (https://www.julianjaynes.org/blog/fact-checks/fact-checking-erik-hoel/)

Julian Jaynes, "Afterword," in Julian Jaynes, "The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind" (Mariner Books, 1976/1990). (https://www.amazon.com/Origin-Consciousness-Breakdown-Bicameral-Mind/dp/0618057072/)

Jan Sleutels, "Greek Zombies: On the Alleged Absurdity of Substantially Unconscious Greek Minds," in Marcel Kuijsten (ed.) "Reflections on the Dawn of Consciousness: Julian Jaynes’s Bicameral Mind Theory Revisited" (Julian Jaynes Society, 2006). (https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/reflections-on-the-dawn-of-consciousness/)

Daniel Dennett, "Julian Jaynes’ Software Archeology," Canadian Psychology, 1986, 27, 2, 149-154. (https://www.julianjaynes.org/resources/articles/julian-jaynes-software-archeology/)

Marcel Kuijsten (ed.), "Conversations on Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind: Interviews with Leading Thinkers on Julian Jaynes’s Theory" (Julian Jaynes Society, 2022). (https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/conversations-on-consciousness-and-the-bicameral-mind/)

Includes discussion of the problem of consciousness, what is consciousness is and is not according to Julian Jaynes, the importance of metaphorical language and writing, features of consciousness, Nicholas Humphrey's research on cave art and autism, evidence from the Iliad, ancient bicameral civilizations, the Thera explosion and ensuing tsunami, and Michael Carr's research on the bicameral mind in China. In the second hour, Marcel Kuijsten discusses the role of drugs, entheogens, hallucinogens in eliciting bicameral hallucinations, the importance of dreams in documenting the transition from bicamerality to consciousness, the origin of religion and the bicameral mind, and more. Also discussed is the significance to the theory of religious figures like Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, to more modern people like William Blake, Emanuel Swedenborg and Joseph Smith.

To listen to the full 100-minute interview, learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory, or become a member, visit the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠⁠https://www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠⁠​.

"Julian Jaynes and the Bicameral Mind Theory," an interview with Marcel Kuijsten by Dustin Eirdosh.

Includes an introduction to Julian Jaynes's theory, an explanation of what consciousness is and is not according to Julian Jaynes, consciousness and language, an explanation of the bicameral mind, follow up books on Jaynes's theory, the origin of the Julian Jaynes Society, misconceptions about Jaynes's theory, confusion over the term "consciousness," the origin of religion and the bicameral mind, new evidence for Jaynes's theory, and much more.

Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at ⁠⁠https://www.julianjaynes.org⁠⁠​.