a generative concept of poetic truth

8/20/2019 A Generative Concept of Poetic Truth

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P O E T I C T R U T H

Raymond Horvath

A Generative Concept of Poetic Truth

1. T HE P ROBLEM , T HE M ETHOD, AND THE O BJECTIVE

Peter Baker in Modern Poetic Practice, as Albert Cook puts it onthe back cover of the book, “attepts to !evelop a "enerativecriticis of poetic practice#$% Baker eplo&s tra!itional rhetoricalters to !escribe the process in 'hich the poetic te(t is a!e# He

seriousl& consi!ers the conventions of rhetorical criticis, as hisTable of Contents reveals,

%# )eor& as a )o!el for Poetic Creation*+# * the tructure of Absence*-# .esire an! the fors of Poetic E(pression*/# The Act of 0no'in"1 tructurin" * Poes*2# t&le an! Copassion*

He tests his approach throu"h the anal&sis of a fe' selecte!poes b& ei"ht !i3erent poets# He i!enti4es poetr& as a 4el! of creative activit& in 'hich the artist uses lan"ua"e to obili5eother faculties of self6a'areness# He !oes not liit the anal&sis of the poe to lin"uistic structures that parallel the or"ani5ation of memory # He 4n!s that memory !oinates in certain situations,'hile it i"ht pla& ne"li"ible roles in others, 'hen a!ence,

%Peter Baker, Modern "oetic "ractice# !tr$ct$re and %ene!i! 78e' 9ork1 :an",%; 7Aerican Universit& eries, Coparative :iterature, vol# +#>

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de!ire, &no'in%, !ty(e, or com"a!!ion can take the lea!# In this'a&, he a!its that conceptual thinkin" an!@or lin"uisticcounication cannot repro!uce e(perience full& becausee(perience is ore cople( an!@or ore personal than the& are#His application of rhetorical cate"ories can islea! those 'hoassue the presence of an Aristotelian tra!ition that usesrhetorical ters as con"ruent eleents in a terinolo" Bakerephasi5es the vali!it& of his cate"ories, but !isisses the

Aristotelian concept of the 'hole as lin"uisticall& an!conceptuall& inaccessible# He ephasi5es the vali!it& of hiscate"ories, but !isisses the Aristotelian concept of the 'hole aslin"uisticall& an! conceptuall& inaccessible# His application of tra!itional ters in a !econstructionist settin" is anaccoplishent in itself but even his rearkable e(pertisecannot re!ee the inherent 'eaknesses of !econstruction# Ia"ree 'ith hi that the literar& 'ork of art is, fro its authorspoint of vie', an e(pression of a hopelessl& personali5e! sta"e inthe co"nitive process# As such, it can never ateriali5e for therea!er 'ithout a perhaps siilar, but har!l& ever i!entical

process# The proble 'ith this approach is that at 4rst Bakeriplies that 'e cannot reall& talk about personal e(perience 'hich the literar& 'ork of art obviousl& is then he talks about it,nevertheless# In!ee!, the rea!ers reconstruction of the authorse(perience never coinci!es 'ith the ori"inal e(perience, but I 'illtr& to sho' 'h& not# E(perience is unrepeatable, even for thesae person, thus the proble lies in the uniueness of e(perience, not in its inalienabilit Dritin" an! rea!in" poetr&

oin ever&!a& e(perience in eor&, partakin" in a process thatfollo's the patterns of co"nition# I ephasi5e the process, an! !onot "ive up the hope of reconstructin" the co"nitive patterns of poetic creation# I place & ephasis on a "eneral reconstructionof the poetic process#

I ephasi5e the poets point of vie' 'ith Baker, but !iscussthe poetic process as an inte"ral part of the co"nitive process'ith the ultiate "oal of coputeri5e! eulation# The poeto!ulates e(perience hel! in eor& suitable for poetic

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si"ni4cation# In this essa&, I intro!uce a theor& of truth u!"entthat situates poetic si"ni4cation in the co"nitive process# A !eeper un!erstan!in" of the nature of truth u!"ent eliinatesabortive !isputes over issues that ake sense onl& for thein!ivi!ual subect# This vanta"epoint also enables e to outline ao!ular o!el for poetic si"ni4cation# )& theor& follo's thesta"es of the co"nitive process an! provi!es a controllin" tool forcheckin" truth content a"ainst pra"atic functionalit I share

Bakers hope that “the "roup inscribe! b& this te(t is not sipl& asocial class or even a class of professional scholars, but all poetsan! 'riters activel& involve! in pro!ucin" 'orks of theia"ination#$ 7Baker, i(> The co"nitive process in 'hich poetr&is onl& one of the several possible strate"ies selects or !evelopsproble6solvin" etho!s for particular situations that see tosho' soe re"ularit For one, the poets kno'le!"e coul!appro(iate the rea!ers b& pointin" to the universal uestionsthat un!erline co"nitive activit

)o!ern theories in ost areas of huanities that I kno'!isre"ar! the possibilit& of a consensus# It 'oul! be far too siple

to blae the nee! for an aca!eic career an!, conseuentl&, self6arketin", self6usti4cation, or paranoia# A fe' ore iportantreasons 'h& a consensus 'oul! be either preature oripossible !eserve our consi!eration# A etatheor& ebracin" alle(istin" approaches 'ill ateriali5e onl& if17%> the theories it e!iates bet'een are all true in soe 'a&G7+>natural lan"ua"e iplies su3icient coon kno'le!"e to

counicateG therefore, coon probles e(istG7-> the fun!aental units of counication are base! on

coonl& kno'n ans'ers to "eneral problesG7/> the theor& eets its o'n truth con!itionsG72> the results solve probles outsi!e the theor&G that is, evi!ence

of the vali!it& of the theor& lies outsi!e the theor&, thusavoi!in" circular reasonin"#

I 'ill test & ar"uent a"ainst these con!itions# First, I 'ill!iscuss possible reasons 'h& thin"s that are consi!ere! true b&an& are not necessaril& true at all# econ!l&, I 'ill propose

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criteria for the value of speci4c cases of truth u!"ent# Finall&, I'ill !eonstrate that & !escription is s&steatic enou"h to bereliable b& pointin" out its shortcoin"s# After all, the !esi"n of theoretical s&stes ou"ht to inclu!e the point of their failure,a!ittin" their ran"e, avoi!in" proble6solvin" areas the& arenot eant to a!!ress#

). * +NCTIONALIT

A LONE

P ROVIDE- L ITTLE EVIDENCE

*OR T R+TH CONTENT

The relics of literate cultures have preserve! an ebarrassin"ultitu!e of lo"icall& irreconcilable theories that, nevertheless,full& function as approaches an! techniues to conceptuali5ee(perience in their o'n cultures an!, soeties, even in othercultures# The tren!s kno'n to!a& are assue! to have survive!because the& have !eterine! the course of histor Thear"uent that i!eas becoe popular because the& 'ork i"httept the cultural historian# Ho'ever, it is not !i3icult to point

out that an& i!eas becoe popular because the& 'ork but solve!i3erent probles fro the ones the& initiall& a!!resse!# In other'or!s, falsehoo! often 'orks 'hen truth !oes not# Attractivei!eas nearl& al'a&s en! up as !o"as in i!eolo"ies copetin" forpopularit The 'i!esprea! use of an i!ea a&, at 4rst, ste froits truth content, 'hich is 'h& it can turn into an inte"rate! partof institute! stan!ar!s alost ie!iatel Popular i!easrepresent speci4c 'a&s of askin" uestions that a!!ress soecoon an!, possibl&, universal probles, inclu!in" the probleof havin" to ask uestions# Theories of lan"ua"e or literature,althou"h rarel& strictl& opportunistic, cannot i"nore the proble

of authorit Bakers interpretation of o!ernis in conteporar&literar& criticis illustrates & point1

The ost inuential stu!ies of o!ernis hi"hli"ht thei!eolo"ical content of the 'orks an! thus feature authorsin 'hich this !oinant i!eolo"& is either e(poun!e!!irectl& or clearl& !iscernible# One result of this oveent

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is that aca!eic criticis has becoe increasin"l&!etache! fro the ainstrea of vital an! creativeartistic activit 7Baker p#%>

An i!ea reebere! b& histor& books, therefore, cannot clai tohave solve! the probles that create! it# Rather, it representsspeci4c 'a&s of askin" uestions# uestions isrepresentprobles b& iposin" the speakers point of vie' on the listener#)oreover, a sin"le culture a!its onl& a liite! nuber of

uestions# :an"ua"e refers to kno'n ans'ers to uestions thatcan be aske! in the speakin" counit Cultural thinkin" pa&sattention to functional phenoena# uestions, therefore, initiate,con!one or, at least, in!icate cultural stan!ar!s b& theiriplications# The availabilit& of uestions in a lan"ua"ecounit& arks the boun!aries of cultural thinkin"# Eachculture allo's a nuber of uestions 'ith unuestione!presuppositions, 'hich increases the chances of cultural!o"atis#

Dhile conten!in" that vali! u!"ents are possible inliterar& criticis, I ephasi5e the !isparit& bet'een popular an!

authentic i!eas# Pra"atis has prevaile! as one of the fe''i!el& approve! principles# The critic, 'hen u!"in" a literar&'ork of art in relation to his o'n culturall& an! personall& liite!truth u!"ents, ust observe the a(i that an i!ea can be

u!"e! a$tentic onl& if it proves to have solve! at least soe of its ori"inal probles, preferabl& before bein" accoo!ate! toan i!eolo" Truth u!"ents !eee! necessar& to relate to the'ork of art or in the critics rea!in" reain subect to pra"atic

veri4cation# I a unable to o3er an evaluative suar& of allpossible approaches to & theor&, so I 'ill erel& su""est thatthe etho! elaborate! here 'orks to'ar! its "oal1 it eluci!ates a

fe' aspects of truth u!"ent in the co"nitive process#

/. 0 HAT H APPEN- IN THE CONITIVE P ROCE--2

Proble solvin" constitutes the central facult& of the huanintellect# Accor!in" to ps&cholin"uistic research !one over the

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last fe' !eca!es, ra' sensor& input nee!s spee!& interpretationto reain in the perceivers eor&1 there sees to be a /6secon! liit to reeberin" unprocesse! sensation#+ Articulatethou"ht, 'hen use! successfull& for practical proble solvin",structurall& parallels either sociall& ackno'le!"e! se"ents of cultural scheata- or the seantic pattern of in!ivi!uale(perience retaine! in lon"6ter eor/

Perception is follo'e! b& ie!iate co"nitive processin"

base! on cultural kno'le!"e an! personal u!"ent# Thethinkers concept of the subect epitoi5es the !irection an! thesophistication of his proble6solvin" activit The 4rst sta"e of co"nition pro!uces co"nitive units for lon"6ter eor )ostpeople have little or no !oubt of their o'n internali5e! reection 2

upon previousl& e(perience! co"nitive events# Ho'ever,im"re!!ion! 7ra' perceptual e(perience> an! notion! 74rst6tiese"entation of perceptual e(perience> ake sense in eor&onl& because the thinker relates the to the rest of his kno'le!"eof the 'orl!# The ori"inall& isolate! se"ents of ipressions an!notions eventuall& enter lon"6ter eor .urin" poetic

si"ni4cation, 'orkin" eor& teporaril& retrieves, hol!s, an!e(chan"es co"nitive units eories an! processes fro lon"6ter eor&, thus reinterpretin" the 4rst sta"e of co"nition for asecon! tie# )eor&, after this point, 'ill hol! an episo!ic eventthat 4ts into 'hat Tulvin" !istin"uishes as the seantic portion of

+ee K# perlin", Te in3ormation a4ai(a(e in rie3 4i!$a( "re!entation!# P!yco(o%ica( Mono%ra"! J/ 7%;=L> for e(perients on “partial reporttechniue#$ C#M# .ar'in, )#T# Turve& an! R#K# Cro'!er, NAn au!itor& analo"ue of the perlin" partial report proce!ure1 Evi!ence for brief au!itor& stora"eCo%niti4e P!yco(o%y - 7%;J+> pp# +226+=J is also authoritative on the subect#-This is 'hat the representatives of “ental o!el theor&$ clai in

ps&cholin"uistics# ee P#8# Mohnson6:air!, Menta( mode(! 7Cabri!"e, )A1Harvar! Universit& Press, %; for ore !etail#/ Aon" 'ell6kno'n lin"uists, Fillore an! :ako3 notice that thinkin" is base!on personal an! culturall& share! e(perience# Dhen !escribin" thisphenoenon, Fillore ephasi5es the si"ni4cance of !emantic 3rame, :ako3 ebellishes the i!ea as the idea( co%niti4e mode( 7IC)> but their scripts stressthe sae, coon observation#2The correspon!in" rhetorical ter is memory #

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lon"6ter eor= The resultin" ia"e in eor&, !eterine!b& personal u!"ent, can a3ect an& further truth u!"ent# Thene' u!"ent, if inte"rate! into lon"6ter eor&, 'ill oin othertruth criteria# uch criteria 4rst interpret perceptual im"re!!ion!,then supervise their transforation into 'orkin" notions in theco"nitive space 'here the& ake sense an! 'ill not be use! forevaluatin" phenoena that the& cannot han!le# Fe' scientists'oul! re"ar! astrolo"&, pal6rea!in", or other anifestations of

the occult as reliable sources of kno'le!"e about nature, buteach one of these bene4t fro the se"ent6isolatin" nature of co"nitive proble solvin"# uch a subectivel& frae! s&stecannot fail 'ithin itself for at least four reasons1

7%> it i"nores thou"ht patterns that !o not copl& 'ith it,often b& callin" the !efective 'hich, 'ithin the ran"e of its accopan&in" personal e(perience, the& in!ee! ten! tobeG7+> it !oes not challen"e in!ubitable 4rst6han! e(perienceG7-> it !irects the practitioners a'areness to'ar!sphenoena that resolve probles 'ithin the s&steG

7/> e(perience becoes counicable after the t'o6sta"econceptual se"entation 7ra' perception to ipression,then ipression into notion> that inevitabl& happens 'ithina s&ste !irecte! consciousness that coplies 'ith the4rst t'o principles#J

The thir! process applies to an& for of s&steatic thinkin",inclu!in" approaches to literature#

everal parallel concepts 7“!e4nitions$> e(ist for i!enticalphenoena# Thou"ht s&stes prioriti5e each truth u!"entaccor!in" to its proble6solvin" capacit The cople(it& of suchs&stes can var& accor!in" to the cople(it& of their priorities#These priorities can ran"e fro variables presente! b& o'nership

=E# Tulvin", NEpiso!ic an! seantic eor& in E# Tulvin" an! D# .onal!son,e!s#, Or%ani5ation in memory 78e' 9ork1 Aca!eic Press, %;J+> pp# -, Thoas 0uhn e(poun!s the scientists cultural !eterination#

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or curiosit& to elaborate, hierarchic s&stes of ethics,episteolo"&, an! etaph&sics# For a sin"le person one set of priorities prevails in a sin"le !ecision# In another situation, thesae person 'ill probabl& chan"e the set of priorities on a ostl&practical basis accor!in" to current proble6solvin" nee!s# Forinstance, the rules of lo"ic solve atheatical probles best,'hile an e(istential proble 'ill involve the person as a 'hole#olutions that 'ork best for correspon!in" t&pes of probles

ten! to be chosen in siilar conte(ts b& analo" The functionalit&of occult practices in!icates that the& ans'er the uestions the&ask, so the uestion is not 'hether the& are true or not but if the&are askin" the appropriate uestion#

ince the !isappearance of literac& in :atin, the ten!enc&to'ar!s pluralistic concepts has "ro'n stea!il )ultipleterinolo"ies have evolve! even ore rapi!l& since nation6centere! vie's took over the place of ontolo"&6base! tra!itionalthinkin"# 0risteva refers to this phenoenon in a rather poeticanner in Re4o($tion in Poetic Lan%$a%e1

OUR PHI:OOPHIE of lan"ua"e, ebo!ients of the I!ea,

are nothin" ore than the thou"hts of archivists,archeolo"ists, an! necrophiliacs * These etho!s sho'that * lan"ua"e has been !ivi!e! * into self6containe!,isolate! islan!s heteroclite spaces e(istin" !i3erentteporal o!es 7as relics or proections>, an! oblivious of one another#<

In & rea!in", 0ristevas te(t itself is not e(ept fro 'hat shecalls !emantic "o!itiona(ity # Her i!ea of poetic si"ni4cationappears to be true of other kin!s of conventional !escriptivepractices, inclu!in" her o'n treatise# )oreover, as far as I cansee, onl& those can !ecipher her te(t 'ho, o'in" to their seioticskill, accurac& of observation, an! 'i!e learnin", are full& a'areof the events she is talkin" about# I appen! to her elusivestateent that the “islan!s$ are usuall& in constant u(, notstaticall& co!i4e! for their users# Reection upon e(perience


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"enerates co"nitive units that, inte"rate! into the recursiveinterpretin" process of subseuent e(perience, represent o!ulesin the process of co"nition# 0risteva observes the isolationbet'een in!ivi!uals but !oes not ephasi5e that it ori"inatesfro the copartentali5ation of the counit& an! the loss of hope in interpersonal counication, not fro one of a!issociation of lan"ua"e, 'hich is onl& one of their corollaries#

The lin"uistic copartentali5ation of huanities 'orks

a"ainst the use of tra!itional ters# A pra"aticall& usefulkno'le!"e of ourselves necessitates pluralis an! calls forparallel proections# The stu!& of huanit& evolves into s&ntheticbut arbitraril& phrase! s&stes of thou"ht# ociall& enco!e!seiotic s&stes chan"e rapi!l The accuulatin" !ata shoul! 4tinto a sin"le open s&ste that inte"rates anoalies as o!ularsubs&stes# A cople( recursive al"orith coul! aintain theopen s&ste in a coputeri5e! siulation b& allo'in" !ata to bea!!e! to a self6iprovin" coputer pro"ra ana"in" a !&naicrelational !atabase# uch coputer pro"ras restructuretheselves accor!in" to the actual probles the& !eal 'ith# Thepro"ra 'ill have to, in a huanoi! 'a&, !evelop its o'n o!ulesof interpretation an! eventuall& becoe a partner for verbalcounication, that is, account for all the variables involve!#This is not a purel& theoretical proble an& ore, not even as faras literar& theor& is concerne!# Al"oriths 'ill al'a&s be liite!to solvin" speci4c probles in 'hich the sensor& variables can beconverte! into 4nite al"ebraic stateents# uch theoreticals&stes 'ill, even after overcoin" the liitations of close!s&stes b& "eneratin" their o'n recursive rules, ake a!i3erence onl& as lon" as the& keep solvin" probles# 0ristevasresults illustrate & ar"uent# Her !escriptive s&ste functions'ithin itself althou"h its scope !oes not necessaril& e(cee! a

tautolo"ous reference to itself# :iterar& scholars shoul! follo' thepath of natural sciences instea! of !evelopin" self6su3icients&stes# The& coul! use theories as 'orkin" para!i"s to'ar!sconstructin" an arti4cial intelli"ence that 'ill !eonstrate thee3icienc& of their theories b& its o'n e3icienc& at problesolvin"#

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7. I NDE8ICALIT AND -MPTOMOLO

eioticians use the ter inde9ica(ity to !enote a causalrelationship bet'een the si"ni4er an! the si"ni4e!# The resultin!icates 7“in!e(es$> the cause# In Charles an!ers Peircesclassic e(aple, the presence of soke in!icates 4re# The saeprocess has al'a&s been use! for interpretin" lan"ua"e# Dho'oul! not pon!er ever& once in a'hile 'h& soe other person

speaks in a particular 'a&Q In such cases people e(plore thein!e(ical value of lin"uistic si"ns# The sae etho! can appl& toinvesti"atin" i!eas1 a solution o3ere! to a proble often betterarticulates a 'a& of processin" the proble than articulatin" auseful solution#

-ym"tomo(o%y 'ill, as I propose it, attept to recover thereasons 'h& certain inci!ental solutions are o3ere! to speci4cprobles# I treat culturall& an! in!ivi!uall& speci4c ans'ers tocoon uestions in their in!e(ical value an! i!entif& the ass&ptos for otivations# All ans'ers solve probles, althou"h −as I e(plaine! before − not necessaril& the ones pose! b& the

uestion the& ask#T'entieth6centur& poets o3er selective blen!s of e(istentialist an! huanistic thou"ht# In!e(icall&, e(istentialiscan be re"ar!e! as s&ptoatic of the huan inabilit& toconceptuali5e the 'orl! in a universall& vali! an!@or consistentl&counicable anner# Increasin" rootlessness, follo'in" the!ecline of oral tra!ition in in!ustriali5e! counities, the rapi!an! incessant accuulation of uncontrollable social, cultural, an!environental chan"es, an! inevitable self6contra!iction 'ithinones lifetie ensure that a ultitu!e of parallel conceptseer"e# The lack of an alternative ar"uent !oes not prove thatthin"s theselves ake sense in no other than the currentl&

available paths# Inabilit& to coprehen! an! the volatilit& of sociall& accepte! i!entit& leave the o!ern person 'ith littlechoice but to accoo!ate his !ecisions to each particularsituation 'ithout consistenc The ol!6a"e techniue of aintainin" viable patterns of self6ia"es consistentl& copatible'ith the persons role in the counit& has prove! ipossible to

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sustain ainl& because, o'in" to the absence of a counali!eolo"&, the role is har!l& ever i!enti4able# E(istentialis revealsthe proble 'ithout solvin" it# Dith the (oc$! of u!"enttransferre! fro the public !oain to the inalienable vision of thein!ivi!ual, huan e(istence bears alarin" reseblance totautolo"ous reasonin"# ubectivit& proecte! as the onl& obectiveasset of intelli"ent coprehension i"ht in!icate that thetra!itional close! !escriptive s&stes 'ill have to be replace! b&

open, !&naic o!els that a!euatel&, thou"h inevitabl&teporaril&, serve the purpose of sharin" an! un!erstan!in"#Personal isolation an! the failure of interpersonal counicationlea! to circular ar"uent if, 'ith one "eneratin" the other, the&are assue! to be the central faculties of the huan situation# If e(istentialist episteolo"& is ri"ht, a sociall& coen!able!escription of the situation can never ateriali5e# Thee(istentialist enterprise i"ht eventuall& o3er one of the severalparallel open s&stes necessar& for the elaboration of a !&naico!el for the huan intellect# E(istentialis i"ht not havean&thin" left to sa& be&on! the uniueness of personal !ecisions,a uniueness that the AI siulation 'ill have to repro!uce# 8eo6huanis, 'hen it tries to establish a coon !enoinatoraon" ever&thin" custoaril& reco"ni5e! as huan, appears tobe the antithesis of e(istentialis# The latter clais that the ver&characteristics an! o!es of e(perience huanit& shares havecause! the break!o'n of both un!erstan!in" an! a sense of counit Huanists !o not in! if their 'ork is theoreticall&ipossible as lon" as the& can foster sharin" an! un!erstan!in"#)& current 'ork is part of this historical process# The outcoe isstill out of si"ht#

Prevalent approaches in literar& criticis also !eonstrateprobles besi!es o3erin" teporar& ree!ies to a"e6ol!

probles# :iterar& critics of the last t'o centuries have trie! toipleent the e(pan!in" ran"e of !iversit& an! chan"es in thetechnical fors an! the social roles of the poe an! the poet intotheir !iscourse# In recent !eca!es, pluralis has beenephasi5e! alon" 'ith the ten!enc& to unite huan thinkin"a"ain# The coparison of a lot of parallel s&stes that 'ork i"ht

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o3er an e(planation to the e(istence of parallel s&stes, 'hileplacin" the into a ore "lobal perspective#

It sees possible to 'rite a s&ptoolo"ical histor& of literar& criticis# Ho' far !i! particular critics representcopartentali5e! aspects or even invent probles rather than'ork on onipresent problesQ Ho' can one !istin"uish culturalliitation fro personal 'hiQ Dhich 'ere the tren!s thattransfore! popular i!eas into i!eolo"ies that brou"ht fae for

the critic rather than an& !iscernible pro"ress in the stu!& of literatureQ 8o atter 'hat the ans'ers i"ht be, the in!e(ical

value usuall& epitoi5es the nature of particular critical tren!s#

:. T HE CONITIVE V AL+E

O* T R+TH J +DMENT #

THE - EMANTIC * RAME- O* P OETR

Uberto Eco e(epli4es the copartentali5ation of huanitiesavore! 'ith aristocratic provincialis 'hen he e(plains theliitation of !escriptive s&stes in his intro!uction to 9uri

:otans seantic theor&1 “Dhen a culture is anal&5e! as a co!eor s&ste * the processes of use are richer an! less pre!ictablethan the seiotic o!el that e(plains the#$; This reali5ation 'asabout JJ &ears late1 it entere! the histor& of lo"ic as RussellsPara!o( in Russell an! Dhitehea!s Princi"ia Matematica in%;%-# :ate as it is, let us consi!er the proble itself# Both thecreatin" an! the rea!in" process eplo& co"nitive patterns unlikethe ones use! for their !escription# To coplicate atters further,conceptuali5ation can take place in a nuber of 'a&s, an!in!ivi!ual choices fro these see to copl& 'ith no universalrules but 'ith cultural, personal, an! conte(tual variables#

?arious o!es of co"nitive e(perience i!eall& copose a sin"lecontinuous planeG ho'ever, in realit&, o!es of co"nition see to'ork as tools to'ar!s proble solvin", uch in the 'a& carechanics use !i3erent tools to 4( various probles#

; 9uri :otan, Te +ni4er!e o3 te Mind 7Blooin"ton1 In!iana Universit& Press,%;;L> p# (#

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Conseuentl&, Ditt"ensteins aban!one! i!ea of constructin"continuit& bet'een isolate! reections i"ht actuall& eventuate1but the process 'oul! revolve aroun! universal probles of huanit&, an! not an arti4ciall& enforce! o!e of !iscourse#Proble6centere!ness leaves enou"h roo for pluralisticscholarship# cholars nee! to i!entif& universal probles thatori"inate fro the huan situation irrespective of historical orcultural surroun!in"s#

An ancient referential atri( to co"nitive values i"htappl& even to!a& ore usefull& than copetin" conteporar&theories in the philosoph& of science# :or! 0rishna 7the Creator inHin!uis> sa&s in the Ba%a4ad;ita1

)en sa& that the senses are superiorto their obects, the in! superior to the senses,un!erstan!in" superior to the in!Ghi"her than un!erstan!in" is the self#%L

This t&polo"& assues a hierarch& aon" the o!es of co"nitivee(perience that also applies to the poets co"nitive activit Truth

u!"ents a!e at lo'er levels 'ork as binar& constituents that

can appear in concor!ance 'ith Ditt"ensteins i!ea of fail&reseblance at hi"her levels to construct ore cople( co"nitiveunits !urin" cate"or&6i!enti4cation# Co"nition eplo&s t&picaletho!s that respon! to t&pical probles# These o!es, if the&!o e(ist, also appl& to the poets co"nitive activit To link theancient source to conteporar& scholarship, I 'ill nae theps&cholin"uistic ters that best parallel the co"nitive sta"es of truth u!"ent !escribe! b& the Ba%a4ad;ita#

Em"irica( and (o%ica( co%nition represent the !ialecticalthesis an! antithesis of in!uctive an! !e!uctive reasonin" an!un!erstan!in"#

:evel One1 The pro!ucts of em"irica( co"nition appearhar!l& uestionable at the tie of u!"ent althou"h the& revealanoalies even for the sae subect# Be&on! reco"ni5in" that ahot oven can burn e or hittin" & 4n"er 'ith a haer hurts,

%LTe Ba%a4ad;ita, transl# Barbara toler )iller 78e' 9ork1 Banta Books,%; thir! teachin", verse /+#

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R A 9 ) O 8 . H O R ? A T H

ost epirical e(perience involves pre6!irecte! attention1 &ousee 'hat &ou nee! to see an! the 'a& &ou 'ant to see it# Theperceivers attitu!e preclu!es the chance of obectivitE&e'itness accounts at courts of la' often !eonstrate ho'

vulnerable epirical co"nition can prove# till, epiricalco"nition solves epirical probles e3ectivel The in!uction of,an! !e!uctive e(perientation 'ith, lo"ical probles takes placeat this level# In an encounter 'ith 'ritten poetr&, the epirical

factor a3ects the rea!ers perception of the poe throu"h theualit& of the bin!in", the paper, the t&pefaces, the illustrations,an! the colors of the book# Truth u!"ent takes place in relationto the rea!ers cultural co!es# Perception is linke! 'ith a pre6otivate! interpretin" facult&%% that eplo&s a personall& an!culturall& s&steati5e! pattern of rules an! cate"ories#%+ Theechanis itself accoo!ates the actual cultural an! personalcontents in the sae fashion as an al"ebraic e(pression 'ithultiple variables 'elcoes a variet& of actual nuerals#Ps&cholin"uistics refers to this co"nitive level as the sensor&sta"e of eor&, assuin" that the perceiver interprets ra'

sensor& e(perience before ever thinkin" about it#%-

:evel T'o1 Rationa( co"nition 7this processin" o!echaracteri5es u!"ent in close! s&ste, e# "# lo"ical,etaph&sical, analo"ical, s&llo"istic, circular> !evelops self6su3icient s&stes an! interprets perceptual co"nition b&eplo&in" pre6set rules that prevail in a counit& 7a "roup of people in a space 'here the success of their activit& !epen!s ontheir cooperation> in or!er to ensure functional counication#:o"ical co"nition attepts to ake se"entations of, an! o3ersolutions to, !ileas that eer"e epiricall&, althou"h it 'orksa'lessl& onl& 'ith abstract probles 7inclu!in" an& t&pe of s&steatic thinkin", usuall& incorporatin" the processin" of t'oseantic planes at the sae tie>#

%%-en!ory memory is interprete! b& 'or&in% memory #%+Ps&cholin"uists call this !emantic memory , part of "ermanent memory #%-ee perlin" for ore !etail# It is essential that uninterprete! eor& lasts forabout / secon!s an! onl& those eleents survive that have been linke! 'ithlon"6ter eor

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suppose! to rationali5e the irrational too# :o"ical uestions often"enerate ans'ers that 'ork but b& the la's of lo"ic, ake little orno sense# The proble the uestions pose still nee!s to be solve!in a pra"atic anner# :au"hter an! art, aon" other thin"s,o3er such illo"ical, but functional solutions# Poes certainl& "obe&on! the reach of lo"ic, so e(pectin" lo"ic to serve as thepriar& tool for i!entif&in" the eleents of the poetic act courtsiinent frustration#

The e(istence of a s&steatic response to epirical inputsu""ests that the sensor& input notice!, conceptuali5e, an! use!as a basis for coparison b& the co"nitive faculties are!&naicall& relate! in the process of truth u!"ent# ensor&input is transitte! throu"h the 4lter of memory an! de!ire, an!each eor& of the 4rst event i"ht restructure the reainin"conceptual ia"e of the ori"inal e(perience b& presentin"another 4lter for inference each tie the eor& is recalle!#Culturall& an! lin"uisticall& speci4c concepts nee! intuition fortheir interpretation# Concept "eneration an! concept reco"nitionrepresent co"nitive !oains that epirical e(perience an!

coon lo"ic cannot solel& aount to#:evel Three1 Conce"t$a( co"nition reco"ni5es an!!&naicall& "enerates concepts b& s&nthesi5in" an initial i!ea'ith another "aine! fro coon analo"& 7analo"& in ateleolo"ical settin"> an! b& an act of prioriti5ation perfore! b&the conceivers sense of proportion# Intuitive, absur!, huorous,bisociative,%/ ietic, enactive, pla&ful, eotional, ree(ive, an!reective analo"ies are soe of the ost coon# Reco"ni5in" a'ell6kno'n coposers usic, even if the particular piece isunkno'n to the listener, e(hibits the virtues of conceptualco"nition# Conceptual co"nition inte"rates binar& thou"htpatterns into personal e(perience# For e(aple, if “hot$ an!

“col!$ represent a !ialectical opposition, their actuali5ationhappens in a coon s&nthetic representation of both in thepersons co"nitive e(perience# The concepts, in the coon

%/ Arthur 0oestlers ter fro Te Act o3 Creation 78e' 9ork1 )ac)illan, %;=/>refers to situations in 'hich t'o incopatible seantic planes participate inconcept6foration#

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s&nthesi5in" process that a!!s personal variables, ove fro thepublic concepts !enote! b& lin"uistic cate"ories to the personso'n sphere of u!"ent# Conceptual co"nition 7at Bakersmemory sta"e> in!uces co"nitive chan"e 'ithin the person# Thee(perience of heat, be&on! bein" a lo"ical concept an! anepirical reali5ation, constitutes a binar& opposition bet'een theconcept an! the epirical input, resultin" in ore than t'oplanes bein" processe! concurrentl Poetr& o3ers priar&

e(perience b& "eneratin" seantic o!ules at the level of &thicsi"ni4cation# Conceptual co"nition usuall& pla&s a !ecisive role increative proble solvin"# A proble can be reove! fro itsconte(t an! transferre! to another conceptual plane 'here iteither functions a"ain or can be eliinate! 'ithout !oin" uchhar to the thinkers ps&cholo"ical unit This strate"& ensuresthe actin" person that realit& is ore spacious than perceptuale(perience, an! even perceptual e(perience can be un!erstoo! infar too an& 'a&s to take an& sin"le eor& too seriousl Mokesan! creative art are the ost obvious e(aples of such proble6solvin" activit Conceptual co"nition, as a rule, involves theconcurrent processin" of lo"icall& irreconcilable seanticplanes#%2 )e!iation bet'een !emantic an! e"i!odic memory reuires the cople(it& of at least this co"nitive sta"e#%=

Aon" these three co"nitive sta"es, conceptuali5ationranks the hi"hest an! the epirical the lo'est in cople(it:evels that are ore cople( can rea!il& appl& lo'er6level truth

u!"ents to construct co"nitive units of their o'n to be u!"e!throu"h &es6no uestions# A less cople( strate"& that has onl&liite! access to hi"her levels can reect upon a hi"her level in asipli4e! anner# To!a&s literar& theorists are usuall& e(pecte!to ake lo"ical ar"uents# Ho'ever, counicatin" conceptualevents lo"icall& is ust as uch ipossible as tastin" the fruits in

a still6life# In "eneral, the sae applies to an& other branches of %20oestler !escribes this process both in ters of “The :o"ic of :au"hter$ 7pp#+J62L> an! of fors of creativit& 7pp# +J%6/%+># Bakers platfors also favorabl&correspon! 'ith this i!ea#%= E"i!odic memory retains the actual event as 'e reeber it 'hile !emanticmemory contains the priorities an! !oinant principles that ai! us in noticin","eneratin", an! evaluatin" the pro!ucts of our co"nition#

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cultural theor The nature of an actual proble !eterines theusefulness of applicable proble6solvin" strate"ies# An epirical,rational, conceptual, or e(istential proble reuires a solution atthe correspon!in" co"nitive level# A cobination of epiricisan! lo"ic pro!uces the ost pro4t in sciences# :o"ic teste!a"ainst ph&sical e(perientation ten!s to con"loerate into truth

u!"ents that in!uce further, pra"aticall& useful truth u!"ents# De kno' ver& little about conceptual co"nition but all

stu!ies of lan"ua"e or literature 'oul! ba!l& nee! a 4rkno'le!"e of it#

:evel Four1 E9i!tentia( co"nition no ps&cholin"uisticparallel e(ists relates to solvin" a proble that involves theperson as a 'hole# The inte"rit& of the huan bein" overri!es thepartial truths reco"ni5e! b& the perceptual an! the intellectualfaculties# Theoreticall& speakin", co"nition can result fro aparticular "roupin" that inclu!es the cobination of !ialecticalpairs of truth u!"ent fro levels one to three# A cobination of perception, lo"ic, an!@or conceptual representation can constitutee(istential u!"ent# Conseuentl&, e(istential co"nition coul! be

veri4e! onl& if the 4rst three levels coul! be cobine! in a sin"le,sociall& enco!e! seantic plane to ensure e3ectivecounication# :ess cople( !ialectical pairs substantiate thee(istence of ore cople( levels analo"icall That less cople(levels inte"rate into ore cople( co"nitive structures su""ests ahierarchic structure of co"nitive planes1 the inter!epen!ence of the increasin"l& cople( 4rst three o!es even speculativel&appropriates the e(istence of a fourth level of co"nition 'hichinvolves the huan bein" as a 'hole# Dhile conceptual co"nitivestructures consist of a cobination of epirical an!@or lo"icalstructures, e(istential co"nitive structures cobine the 4rst threelevels# An unpre!ictable nuber of !ialectical pairs in parallelplanes results fro the co"nitive process that culinates into asin"le !ialectical pair of conceptual un!erstan!in" in a sin"leplane of reali5ation# Conceivabl&, this plane coprises of thepersons sense of the 'orl! that appropriates an e(perience of theself#

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Inherent pre!isposition, if it e(ists, is an e(istential factorof truth u!"ent# Transcen!ental an! visionar& co"nition, if assue! authentic, i"ht be channele! throu"h e(istentialco"nition# Faith in soethin" can also be an e(istential necessit&,easil& overrulin" the 4n!in"s of perception, lo"ic, or ost forsof conceptuali5ation 7'hich, nevertheless, a3ect the availablescope of choices># Even if poetr& a!!resses huanit& e(istentiall&,the phenoenon itself, since it involves the 'hole huan bein",

cannot reveal itself to an&thin" less than another huan bein" asa 'hole# 8icolas Ber!a&ev refers to this kno'le!"e prece!in"e(perience%J in Tr$t and Re4e(ation1

* the nature of truth is not intellectual an! purel&co"nitive, * it ust be "raspe! inte"rall& b& the 'holepersonalit&G * the truth is e(istential#%<

Of course, Ber!a&evs stateent akes sense onl& if free 'ill an!truth u!"ent collate# If the& !o, the intro!uction of theco"nitive levels of truth u!"ent points out the self6contra!ictionin uite a fe' coon episteolo"ical uestions#

The Ba%a4ad ita !oes not specif& further levels of

co"nition# Ho'ever, another t'o coul! be, an! in!ee! have been,coonl& conceive!# Althou"h their veri4cation i"ht neverbecoe full& possible, assuin" their e(istence sees useful onthe roa! to'ar!s an arti4cial intelli"ence eulation of culturalthinkin" because the& constitute another t'o o!ules of truth

u!"ent that i"ht prove, eventuall&, har! to !ispense 'ith#:evel 4ve1 -ocia( co%nition ori"inates fro the historicall&

popular i!ea that huans belon" to"ether# Mun"s collectiveunconscious, Christs &sterious bo!& in Roan Catholic!octrine, the i!ea of Universal Consciousness in Taoist an!Bu!!hist tra!ition appear to refer to the sae "remi!e# A

Bu!!hist 'oul! probabl& refer to “all livin" thin"s,$ 'hile a Taoist'oul! nae “all thin"s#$ Essentiall&, all these approaches appearto be variations on the sae thee# If this level e(ists, poetr&

%J A "riori in 0ant#% p# +LG the uote is froRobin kelton, Poetic tr$t 78e' 9ork1 Barnes 8oble, %;J p# %+L#

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inevitabl& constitutes a part of it an!, as such, it 'ill not be!e4ne! before this level of co"nition is foun! is properl&!escribe!#

:evel si(1 The theoreticall& ost cople( level of co"nitionis conceive! 'hen all thin"s are assue! to belon" to"ether in asin"le ultiate haron& 'ith 'hich personal contact is !eee!possible# This level coul! be tere! +ni4er!a( co"nition# This i!eaalso freuentl& occurs in the histor& of civili5ation# Bu!!hist an!

Taoist thinkin" an! a pantheistic concept of the universeconver"e 'ith )allarSs insi"ht1

I believe that trul& to be huan, nature thinkin", one ustthink 'ith all ones bo!&, 'hich in turn &iel!s a thou"htfull an! in unison like the strin"s of a violin vibratin"une!iatel& 'ith their bo( of hollo' 'oo! * this isnecessar& in or!er to have a vie' trul& − one of theUniverse#%;

8otabl&, the +ni4er!a( level is onl& the en! of a chain 'herereason an! e(perience ipose their liits on thou"ht an!lan"ua"e# Althou"h successful translations of poetr& eplo& truth

u!"ent that 'orks cross6culturall&, poetr& i"ht inclu!e oreco"nitive !oains than the si( that I have nae!#

The follo'in" chart contains both the veri4able an! theh&pothetical levels of co"nition in a !ialectical hierarch&parallele! b& Mun"s personalit& t&pes#+L I interpret the sensation, feelin", rational thou"ht, an! intuition as problesolvin" strate"ies# I in!icate the potential resources of otivationh&potheticall&, akin" no attept to ustif& the in this essa

7:evels of co"nition> Universal @ ocial E(istential

@ 7Conceptual level> Artistic cienti4c @ @

%;Henr& )ono!&, E$%#

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7Fiel!s of otivation> Feelin" Intuition EpiricalRational

Copl&in" 'ith the Mun"ian !istribution of attributes, the 4el!s of otivation pair up into epirical@intuitive an! rational@feelin"!iensions, akin" the o!el three6!iensional# Intuition an!feelin" act in !ialectical antithesis to epirical an! lo"icalco"nition# Althou"h both are conceptual in & previous !e4nitionof the ter, I have !istin"uishe! artistic fro scienti4c co"nitionsince relativel& clear counication of concepts is possible onl&'hen the& coe fro perceptual an! lo"ical resources, 'hileartists e(press feelin" or intuition ore overtl& althou"h notnecessaril& better or ore often than or!inar& ortals !o# Thesocial level irrors the e(istential frae# The counit&aintains its o'n co"nitive units in the sae 'a& as in!ivi!uals!o, e(cept that the co"nitive contents of the counit& areavailable to each of its ebers an! is usuall& lin"uisticall&enco!e!# In ever&!a& life, popular &ths are consi!ere! true in acounit Aon" conteporar& &ths the ones in e!icinebehave uite characteristicall&1 the& chan"e freuentl& an! uite

spectacularl+%

=. T R+TH AND P OETR

Historicall& !oinant !escriptive techniues concentrate on thestructural, poetic, ietic, an! a3ective eleents of a poe# Thepoets point of vie' has been rarel& consi!ere! as a separateissue# Fro Antiuit& to Classicis it 'as consi!ere! obvious#:ater it becae &sti4e! in Roanticis an! fro the Avant6"ar!e on it has been classi4e! as inaccessible#++ Dhen the poets

+%For e(aple, it turne! out recentl& that a re"ular over!ose of ore than 2LL"of vitain C, consi!ere! innocuous since its !iscover&, !aa"es the recipients.8A#++Carl Fehran in Poetic Creation# In!"iration and Cra3t, transl# 0arin Petherick 7)inneapolis1 Universit& of )innesota Press, %; pp# %;


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ob 'as clearl& to teach 'hile incitin" !eli"ht, tra!itional lo"ical6philosophical cate"ories referre! to the tools of poetr It 'asassue!, as ol!6tie school s&llabi su""est b& the inclusion of 'ritin" poetr& into the curriculu, that even the less6than6talente! coul! un!erstan! the nature of these tools an! learntheir usa"e b& iitatin" the asters# The cult of the creative"enius reache! its clia( in the nineteenth centur+- It 'as aark of the "enius to create a 'holl& ne' vision of realit&,

soeties even to sho' the 'a& for the asses# In our !a&s,poets are neither asters nor prophets# Dhen aske! about poetr&,their opinions ten! to !i3er to the e(tent of !iscre!itin" oneanother#

Rhetorical Criticis e(plores 'ritin" strate"ies# t&listics,counterin" the sae proble, concentrates on e3ects, ratherthan on techniues# Rhetorical criticis inclu!es prose, an! italso treats speakin" in public# peakin" in public has been one of the 'a&s poetr& appeare! in histor&G prose poes have alsobecoe coon in the last one hun!re! &ears# Rhetoricalcriticis tra!itionall& applies a !escriptive lan"ua"e that !oes not

concern itself 'ith the buil!in" of theories or !i""in" !o'n to theroots of a poes ori"in# The vali!it& of the rules it proposes isusuall& a3ire! b& their inuencin" an au!ience e3ectivel+/

Poetic tools can be un!erstoo! as proble6solvin" etho!s,'hich eans that coputers can learn to use the as soon as theprobles are clearl& reveale!# I have a!e the 4rst step in thisessa& b& pointin" out the possibilit& of a binar& s&ste that iscapable of truth u!"ent, 'hile ali"nin" the probles an! thesolutions in the sae co"nitive plane# The recursive nature of proble solvin" a'aits aca!eic treatent in another essa

+-#T# Coleri!"es !istinction bet'een priar& an! secon!ar& ia"inationilluinates such an approach# ?ictor Hu"os role in French culture even !urin"his lifetie e(epli4es the reverence the “creative "enius$ 'as occasionall&entitle! to receive#+/Richar! A# :anha, A Hand(i!t o3 Retorica( Term! 7O(for!1 Universit& of California Press, %;;%> is a "oo! e(aple of this, an! represents anauthoritative perspective in the 4el!#

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The levels of truth u!"ent, 'hen reco"ni5e!, perfor asthe prieval “black holes$ of kno'le!"e1 the& "ather ol!probles to"ether aroun! co"nitive faculties# The s&steatichierarch& of the co"nitive levels of truth u!"ent i"ht prove tobe a lon" step to'ar!s !escribin" the co"nitive process, the onl&conte(t likel& to she! li"ht on the creative act# A full suar& of the process 'ill epitoi5e co"nitive patterns in as&ptoolo"icall& usti4able ren!ition that o!ularl& prepares

the "roupin"s of truth u!"ent to 4t for a coprehensivecoputeri5e! eulation of the act of poetr

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a generative concept of poetic truth

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