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[[[
++[http://deoxy.org/alephnull/jaynes.htm The Origin of Consciousness
in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind]++ by Julian Jaynes
----
~~~Imported from [Wikipedia:Bicameralism%20(psychology) Wikipedia] on 2007-02-17~~~
In psychology, 'bicameralism' is a controversial theory which argues that the
human brain once assumed a state known as a bicameral mind in which cognitive
functions are divided between one part of the brain which appears to be
"speaking," and a second part which listens and obeys.
The term was coined by psychologist Julian Jaynes, who presented the idea in the
1976 book 'The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind',
wherein he made the case that the bicameral mentality was the normal state of
the human mind everywhere as recently as 3000 years ago. He used governmental
bicameralism metaphorically to describe this state, exemplifying his theoretical
postulate that language (and thus thought) expands by the use of metaphors.
== * The case for bicameralism ==
: At one time human nature was split in two, an executive part called a god, and
: a follower part called a man. Neither part was Consciously aware.
According to Jaynes, ancient people in the bicameral state would function in a
manner similar to that of a modern-day schizophrenic. Rather than making
conscious evaluations in novel or unexpected situations, the person would
hallucinate a voice or "god" giving admonitory advice or commands, and obey
these voices without question. Others have argued that this state of mind is
recreated in members of cults.
In his 1976 work The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral
Mind, Julian Jaynes proposed that human brains existed in a bicameral state
until as recently as 3000 years ago. Jaynes builds a case for this theory by
citing evidence from many diverse sources including historical literature. He
took an interdisciplinary approach, drawing data from many different fields.
Jaynes asserts that until roughly the times written about in Homer's Iliad,
humans did not generally have the self-awareness characteristic of consciousness
as most people experience it today. Rather, Jaynes argued that the bicameral
individual was guided by mental commands believed to be issued by external
"gods"—the commands which were so often recorded in ancient myths, legends and
historical accounts; these commands were however emanating from individuals' own
minds. This is exemplified not only in the commands given to characters in
ancient epics but also the very muses of Greek mythology which "sang" the poems:
Jaynes argues that while later interpretations see the muses as a simple
personification of creative inspiration, the ancients literally heard muses as
the direct source of their music and poetry.
Jaynes inferred that these "voices" came from the right brain counterparts of
the left brain language centres—specifically, the counterparts to Wernicke's
area and Broca's area. These regions are somewhat dormant in the right brains of
most modern humans, but Jaynes noted that some studies show that auditory
hallucinations cause increased activity in these areas of the brain.
For example, he asserts that, in The Iliad and sections of the Old
Testament in The Bible, no mention is made of any kind of cognitive
processes such as introspection, and he argues that there is no apparent
indication that the writers were self-aware. According to Jaynes, the older
portions of the Old Testament (such as the Book of Amos) have little or none
of the features of some later books of the Old Testament (such as
Ecclesiastes) as well as later works such as The Odyssey, which show
indications of a profoundly different kind of mentality—an early form of
consciousness.
Jaynes noted that in ancient societies, the corpses of the dead were often
treated as though they were still alive (being seated on chairs, dressed in
clothing, and even fed food) and he argued that the dead bodies were presumed to
be still living and the source of auditory hallucinations (see ancestor
worship). This adaptation to the village
communities of 100 individuals or more formed the core of religion. Unlike
today's hallucinations, the voices of ancient times were structured by cultural
norms to produce a seamlessly functioning society.
In ancient times, Jaynes noted, gods were generally much more numerous and much
more anthropomorphic than in modern times, and speculates that this was because
each bicameral person had their own "god" who reflected their own desires and
experiences.
Even in modern times, Jaynes notes that there is no consensus as to the cause or
origins of schizophrenia (the subject is still hotly debated). According to
Jaynes, schizophrenia is simply a vestige of humanity's earlier state. Jaynes noted that many schizophrenics have "command
hallucinations" wherein the "voices" command the schizophrenic to commit certain
acts. In Jaynes' argument, these command hallucinations are little different
from the commands from gods which feature so prominently in ancient stories.
Breakdown of bicameralism Jaynes theorized that a shift from bicameralism marked
the beginning of introspection and consciousness as we know it today. According
to Jaynes, this bicameral mentality began malfunctioning or "breaking down"
during the second millennium BC. He speculates that primitive ancient societies
tended to collapse periodically (as in Egypt's Old Kingdom and the periodically
vanishing cities of the Mayas) due to increased societal complexity that could
not be sustained by this bicameral mindset. The mass migrations of the second
millennium BC created a rash of unexpected situations and stresses that required
ancient minds to become more flexible and creative. Self-awareness, or
consciousness, was the culturally evolved solution to this problem. Thus
cultural necessity (that of interacting with migrating tribes, or surviving as a
member of such) forced humanity to become self-aware or perish. Thus
consciousness, like bicamerality, emerged as a neurological adaptation to social
complexity.
Jaynes further argues that divination, prayer and oracles arose during this
breakdown period, in an attempt to summon instructions from the "gods" whose
voices could no longer be heard. The consultation
of special bicamerally-operative individuals, or of casting lots and so forth,
was a response to this loss, a transitional era depicted for example in the book
of 1 Samuel.
Leftovers of the bicameral mind today, according to Jaynes, include religion,
possession, schizophrenia and the general sense of need for external authority
in decision-making.
Responses Jaynes's hypothesis found little acceptance among mainstream
academics. This was partly due to the perception that Jaynes was pandering to
the general public, and because he did not offer The Origin of Consciousness for
peer review.
His proposals generated great controversy when first published, and provided
impetus for many other scientists and philosophers to investigate the matters it
discussed in detail in order to attempt to refute its arguments.
Other researchers, such as Daniel Dennett, consider bicameralism to be quite
intriguing but probably incorrect. In a 1987 letter to the American Journal of
Psychiatry, Dr. H. Steven Moffic wrote, "…Jaynes' hypothesis makes for
interesting reading and stimulates much thought in the receptive reader. It does
not, however, adequately explain one of the central mysteries of madness:
hallucination."
Some authorities, however, consider Jaynes's hypothesis worthy and offered
conditional support, arguing the notion deserves further study.Keen, Sam,
"Julian Jaynes: Portrait of the Psychologist as a Maverick Theorizer,"
Psychology Today, November 1977, vol 11, pp. 66-7Keen, Sam, "The
Lost Voices of the Gods (Interview with Julian Jaynes)", Psychology Today,
November 1977, vol 11, pp 58-60 Some scholars suggest that the theory
describes a real event, but that Jaynes provides the wrong date. One theory
about pre-historic cave paintings, for example, is that they offer us a window
into a time when consciousness was emerging, perhaps through the breakdown of
bicameralism.
Further evidence taken to contradict Jaynes's proposed date of the transition
from bicameralism is the Gilgamesh Epic: although the story of Gilgamesh was
recorded centuries before the Old Testament, and though its setting is
contemporaneous or earlier than the Old Testament stories, the Gilgamesh story
describes such features as introspection. Jaynes himself, noting that the most
complete version of the Gilgamesh epic dates to post-bicameral times (7th
century BC), dismisses these "modern" features as the result of rewriting and
expansion by later conscious scribes, and points to differences between the more
recent version of Gilgamesh and surviving fragments of earlier versions. ("The
most interesting comparison is in Tablet X." - detailed in The Origin of
Consciousness, 1982 edition, p. 252f.) Others, such as science fiction author
Neal Stephenson, have since conjectured that heroic epics and myths may be
rooted in isolated individuals who became self-aware early and could accordingly
outmatch and manipulate their fellows.
Similar ideas
Dr. David R. Hawkins, a psychiatrist and mystic, has developed a sophisticated
model for how consciousness has developed—and continues to develop—over
time. Hawkins used the controversial and not widely accepted method of applied
kinesiology to measure and describe the evolution of consciousness both in the
individual and collectively amongst a group of people. Out of this, as first
reported in his book Power vs. Force (1995), a map of consciousness was
developed.
== * Bicameralism in popular culture ==
The ideas set forth in Jaynes' book have been
great fodder for cyberpunk authors; Neal Stephenson's first several books (The
Big U, Zodiac, Snow Crash) involve the bicameral mind
theory, as does Bruce Sterling's Distraction. The book
has been highly influential in a neo-objectivist philosophy called Neo-Tech.
Jaynes' theory is referenced, at least in passing, in the cyberpunk comic
Transmetropolitan. Bicameralism is central to the plot of Sebastian Faulks'
novel Human Traces, and is referred to the novel's appendices. The Origin of
Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind plays a role in Paul
Levinson's 2002 novel The Consciousness Plague,
appears in the Recommended Reading section of Robert J. Sawyer's 2005 novel
Mindscan, and was mentioned as reading material by Leopold Cain, shortly before
his kidnap in NBC-TV's Kidnapped, in the September 2006 premier broadcast of the
series.
Editions of ''The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral
Mind'' The Origin of Consciousness was financially successful, and has been
reprinted several times. The book was originally published in 1976 (ISBN 0-395-20729-
0) and was nominated for the National Book Award in 1978. It has since been
reissued (ISBN 0-618-05707-2). A new edition, with an afterword that addressed
some criticisms and restated the main themes, was published in the US in 1990.
This version was published in the UK by Penguin Books in 1993 (ISBN 0-14-017491-
5).
== * External links ==
* [http://www.julianjaynes.org/book/ Reflections on the Dawn of Consciousness:
Julian Jaynes's Bicameral Mind Theory Revisited (new book)]
* [http://www.julianjaynes.org Julian Jaynes Society]
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*Wikipedia:Category:Consciousness_studies|Bicameral_Mind,_The
*Wikipedia:Category:Neurotheology
*Wikipedia:Category:Psychological_theories
*Wikipedia:Category:Psychology_books|Origin_of_Consciousness_in_the_Breakdown_of_the_Bicameral_Mind,_The
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