The Consciousness Paradox ─ Consciousness, Concepts, and Higher-Order Thoughts

Consciousness is arguably the most important area within contemporary philosophy ofmind and perhaps the most puzzling aspect of the world. Despite an explosion of research fromphilosophers, psychologists, and scientists, attempts to explain consciousness inneurophysiological, or even cognitive, terms are often met with great resistance. In TheConsciousness Paradox, Rocco Gennaro aims to solve an underlying paradox, namely, how it is possibleto hold a number of seemingly inconsistent views, including higher-order thought (HOT) theory,conceptualism, infant and animal consciousness, concept acquisition, and what he calls the HOT-brainthesis. He defends and further develops a metapsychological reductive representational theory ofconsciousness and applies it to several importantly related problems. Gennaro proposes a version ofthe HOT theory of consciousness that he calls the "wide intrinsicality view" and shows whyit is superior to various alternatives, such as self-representationalism and first-orderrepresentationalism. HOT theory says that what makes a mental state conscious is that a suitablehigher-order thought is directed at that mental state. Thus Gennaro argues for an overallphilosophical theory of consciousness while applying it to other significant issues not usuallyaddressed in the philosophical literature on consciousness. Most cognitive science and empiricalworks on such topics as concepts and animal consciousness do not address central philosophicaltheories of consciousness. Gennaro's integration of empirical and philosophical concerns will makehis argument of interest to both philosophers and nonphilosophers.

Rocco J. Gennaro is Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at the University of Southern Indiana.