Conciousness itself appears to lacks form and substance in that it does not have a physical existence. I myself affirm the viewpoint that conciousness is not material. Consciousness may correspond to matter, as it is intertwined with the brain, yet I do not believe that it itself is not the brain, nor that it is a physical component of the brain with a material substance, rather consciousness is immaterial despite having connection to a material entity - the brain. If this were to be the case, as I will posit it in this framework, then conciousness is something that is incorporeal in relation to the world, that is if we were to also affirm the existence of the physical world, with consciousness as something which perceives independently existing physical objects.
Within the realm of consciousness, which is itself incorporeal, something incorporeal can be found, something which is incorporeal within this incorporeal realm. This is the mental image. Within consciousness, corporeality is ascribed to all of the visual objects that are perceived and processed. This all occurs within the realm of consciousness. In this realm, mental images are conjured, and are done in such a way that it is perceived on a plane of reality beyond that which in which sense data is perceived and processed.
When a mental image is perceived, it is not only not perceived in the same way that sense data is perceived. The mental image is also perceived on what I would venture to describe as another plane of existence. This plane is distinct, and this plane is incorporeal within the physical world in the mind, formulated by sense data.
It is so fascinating how we view the physical world as transmitted through sense data, and then also view mental images - that we conjure - while not viewing them in our perception. They are viewed, yet are not viewed. Perhaps they are viewed on a different plane of consciousness, a different plane of reality within the reality of our consciousness. I do believe in the existence of independent physical objects, and the reality of them, however, I do think that within this framework, going a step further we could identify there to be a reality within the mind.
I would not say the phenomenological reality of the mind is truly reality, but it can be described as a reality, nonetheless. This reality is one which perceives another reality and is formulated on the basis of the other reality. This other reality - the physical reality - is what I consider to be the true, objective, reality. Now, in the phenomenological reality, which is within the incorporeal domain of the mind, there exists something that is yet incorporeal despite being within a domain that itself is already incorporeal. This, which is incorporeal within the incorporeal domain of the mind, is the mental image.
The mental image has no spacial location within the sphere of our perceptions of sense data through our vision. Likewise, the other senses of the mental image have a seemingly unbounded existence apart from the direct intake of sense data. In this, I believe the mental image can be said to exist on a transcendent plane of mind, and have an incorporeal existence. If the perception of the physical world is corporeal within the incorporeal mind, then the mental image, which is distinct from the physical sphere of the perception as a direct understanding of sense data, holds an incorporeal position within an already incorporeal realm - the mind. Perhaps the mental image could thus be described as being exponentially incorporeal.
The mental image deals with the imaging of the perceived world as does the perception alone, but the mental image is on a different plane of existence in the regard that it is understood differently, and processed on a higher level, one which mixes raw perception of prior sense data - which is memorized - with analysis and other processes of the brain. This is the mental image, and it covers all of the human senses; this is something that is incorporeal in an incorporeal realm, thus making it exponentially incorporeal. As something which is seemingly exponentially incorporeal, the mental image is incredibly unique and special.
Thank you for reading.
- Eli Gardenswartz
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