Dennett famously argues that consciousness is not a "magic spark" but a Just as you don't need to understand code to use a computer folder icon, your "conscious self" is a simplified interface your brain provides so you can interact with other humans and manage your own complex internal states. Ready to dive deeper?
We are now "intelligent designers" who can consciously engineer new memes (like scientific theories or technologies). From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution o...
If biological evolution gave us the hardware (our brains), cultural evolution gave us the software. Dennett leans heavily on the concept of —units of cultural information that replicate and evolve just like genes. Dennett famously argues that consciousness is not a
We don't just "have" ideas; ideas often use us to replicate. Culture evolved through a mindless process of selection long before we were smart enough to direct it. 3. The De-Darwinizing of Culture If biological evolution gave us the hardware (our
The most radical shift Dennett proposes is that .