Since of much of modern discourse, extending from cognitivism to connectionism to deconstructivism, has been greatly inclined to look at reality in relation to processes where the personal factor plays little if any causal role, the pursuit of wisdom today has become primarily identified with the logos or the pursuit of a rational account of reality and the rule governing principles behind it. Although there is not space enough to traverse all that is involved here, it will be argued in (...) this paper that the secrets of wisdom will never be revealed if its nature is limited to a singular description of just one function of thought. What is needed if the love of wisdom is to be regained is a more dynamic and symmetrical account—one that considers the reconstructive e nature and generative e capabilities of the human mind as well as the flexibility and complexity of thought; one that realizes that the end stages of logos are only the by-product of insight obtained from more personal and emotionally charged meaning; and one that takes seriously the role of mythos in the thinking process. (shrink)

What is the future of the poetic figures in a technological and scientific world where a more restricted view appears to be emerging as to what is adequate and relevant about metaphors? What part should the radical trope play in a script where the figures that are heralded are usually those that are perceived as having practical importance, i.e., those that fill in the gaps of existing knowledge? It will be the intent of this paper to show that the current (...) preoccupation of much of philosophy and psychology with structural explanation and cognitive theory has certainly contributed to establishing a coordinated and unified theory of metaphors, but left unto itself such a concern is severely limited and does not adequately explain the full potential of metaphorical expressions. (shrink)

Since much of modern discourse, extending from cognitivism to connectionism, has been greatly inclined to look at human behavior in relation to processes where the subjective factor plays little if any causal role, it would not be inaccurate to say that the person has been left with but a trivial part to play in the overall script. The intent of this paper is to address this theoretical disproportionality by offering a more symmetrical account of creativity C one that reconsiders the (...) reconstructive nature and generative capabilities of the person while not ignoring the contributions of technical and scientific thought. (shrink)

The present trend towards an atheoretical statistical method of psychiatric classification has prompted many psychiatrists to conceive of "mental disorder", or for that matter any other psychopathological designation, as an indexical cluster of properties and events more than a distinct psychological impairment. By employing different combinations of inclusion and exclusion criteria, the current American Psychiatric Association's scheme (called DSM-III) hopes to avoid the over-selectivity of more metaphysical systems and thereby provide the clinician with a flexible means of dealing with a (...) wide diversity of cases. In the hope of redirecting future inquiry, the paper will argue: (1) that this recent trend might appear to be clinically beneficial, but in point of fact it is riddled by unsound theoretical conclusions which leave the field without a deeply reaching base for understanding and treating mental disorder, and (2) that, a fortiori, "mental disorder" is best conceived as not a cluster of properties and events, nor a metaphorical reaction to a breakdown in social interpersonal relations, but as a deeply laid condition characterized by the absence of an imaginally integrated system. (shrink)

There is more than a tendency within the cognitive and physical sciences today to look upon the behavior of the individual as dependent upon rule governed systems that are divorced from one's intentions but which still shape the direction the consequences take. Such a view often perceives creativity as a perfunctory affair where local problems are gradually solved and things finally come together. Indeed the creative act would seem to be little more than a simple step by step modification of (...) previous ideas based on increased information - a borrowed token of sequential processes. (shrink)