Monday, January 3, 2011

Menary (2006) on Integration and Constitution

Controversially, on this account, the process of remembering is constituted by the integration of internal and external vehicles and processes which complement one another in the completion of a cognitive task (Menary, 2006, p. 330).
So, here Menary is invoking a notion of constitution (that he thinks A&A need to explicate for him) and "integration" seems to be another causal coupling kind of notion (only under a new term).  So, as I read things, there are causal and constitutive notions in play here, ripe for the C-C fallacy.

The picture looks to be like this.  There is a task, say, getting to the MoMA.  Then there are these things brainy representations in Otto's brain and these inscriptions in this book, among other things.  It is the integration--the causal coupling--between all these things that enable Otto to get to the MoMA.  So, all those integrated things--all those causally coupled things--constitute the process of remembering.  The fallacy looks to be that simple.

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