Imagination is dialogical

We are now at a point where creating something like “a new life” may no longer be just something out of a science fiction story.

Using AI, we might be capable of creating something that is not only a tool but can be seen as a very powerful assistant. This power comes with responsibilities, so we must be prepared for the implications and threats to the status quo when machines develop consciousness and learn to make their own decisions, and change the nature of our human languages.

It's also the right timing to start practicing Active Imagination rather than fantasizing about Chat GPT prodigy.

On Dialogue

In a dialogue, each person does not attempt to make common certain ideas or items of information that are already known to him. Rather, it may be said that the two people are making something in common, i.e., creating something new together.

– David Bohm

David Bohm is considered one of the most important theoretical physicists of the 20th century. In his early career, he developed the theory of the fourth state of matter (plasma), which led to theories of metals, then elementary particles and, most significantly, breakthrough theories in quantum mechanics. Einstein once called him his “intellectual successor”.

Roughly speaking, Bohm’s career started out highly academic and technical, and gradually moved towards softer, philosophical subjects. His interest in quantum mechanics led him to consider the role of consciousness in shaping reality, which led him to the philosophy of the mind, which in turn led him to the concept of dialogue.

In examining Bohm’s life outside of his own work, we can recognize a few relationships as precursors to his focus on the concept of dialogue. One was the friendship between Niels Bohr and Albert Einstein, which Bohm witnessed.

Bohr and Einstein started out as great friends but slowly drifted apart due to a philosophical disagreement on the nature of truth in the context of science. Bohr argued that the observer played a role in the definition of truth, while Einstein called this a “tranquilizer philosophy” and thought that the observer played no role in the evaluation of scientific truth.

The other relationship that significantly influenced his conception of dialogue was with J. Krishnamurti.

I maintain that truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view, and I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organized; nor should any organization be formed to lead or coerce people along a particular path. … This is no magnificent deed, because I do not want followers, and I mean this. The moment you follow someone you cease to follow Truth. I am not concerned whether you pay attention to what I say or not. I want to do a certain thing in the world and I am going to do it with unwavering concentration. I am concerning myself with only one essential thing: to set man free. I desire to free him from all cages, from all fears, and not to found religions, new sects, nor to establish new theories and new philosophies.

– J. Krishnamurti

Dialogic Imagination

The great Mikhail Bakhtin postulated that, rather than being static, language evolves dynamically and is affected by and affects the culture that produces and uses it. 

In his final essay, Bakhtin provided a model for a history of discourse and introduced the concept of heteroglossia. Heteroglossia is the reflection in the language of varying ways of evaluating, conceptualizing, and experiencing the world.

Language is intrinsically shaped, historically and in each individual speech act, by qualities such as perspective, evaluation, and ideological positioning, and in this fundamental sense is not amenable to the science of linguistics. Every word is inextricably bound to the context in which it exists, the intention of the speaker, and the intentions of other speakers of the same word, and cannot or should not be reduced to an abstraction or an algorithm unless we want to all think and dream the same way.

Our imagination cannot grow and evolve without dialogue. Be it a dialogue with ourselves or with others.

Dialogical Self

The dialogical self is a psychological concept that describes the mind's ability to imagine the different positions of participants in an internal dialogue, in close connection with external dialogue. The "dialogical self" is the central concept in the dialogical self-theory (DST), as created and developed by the Dutch psychologist Hubert Hermans in the 1990s.

Dialogical Self Theory (DST) weaves two concepts, self, and dialogue, together in such a way that a more profound understanding of the interconnection of self and society is achieved.

Functioning as a "society of mind",[1] the self is populated by a multiplicity of "self-positions" that have the possibility to entertain dialogical relationships with each other.

Dialogic action

What is the goal of dialogic action?

The goal of dialogic action is always to reveal the truth by interacting with others and the world. In the dialogic action theory we can distinguish between dialogical actions, the ones that promote understanding, cultural creation, and liberation; and non-dialogic actions, which deny dialogue, distort communication, and reproduce power.

Spontaneous imagination

The modern cultural situation is characterized by the increasing role of figurative elements in the processes of transmission and information exchange. This is particularly evident in Internet human communications. 

Spontaneity is a key existential characteristic of the human ability of imagination. 

The problem of spontaneous imagination is not limited only to an epistemological aspect but refers to the ontological mode of human existence. This problem manifests itself in the phenomena of spontaneous image cooperation and competition that is independent of the subject in the context of the imaginary ontology. These processes are the imaginative factors for the intensification of cultural communication between different traditions.

Ontological consciousness

What is the ontology of consciousness?

The ontology that allows one to conceptualize the material world as existing and not shifting constantly includes as part of its conscious perception, and could not function without including it.

Ontological Imagination

Ontological imagination unifies two moments: the modern critique of being and sensitivity towards the baroque 'non-disenchanted' ontology of the world.

Philosophical research should be aware of mediating the cognitive process in the regard that the simple fact of cognition is also an ontological fact. Philosophizing, even when through cogitation, is also an element of this world. Practicing the sociology of knowledge is by necessity ontological.

Ontological imagination is a researcher's disposition that allows for the realization wherein ontology is not stabilized in the order of things and as such is not in status quo when happened upon by the subject who merely provides cognitive operations.

Active Imagination

Active imagination is a dialogue with different parts of yourself that live in the unconscious. In some way, it is similar to dreaming, except that you are fully awake and conscious during the experience. This, in fact, is what gives this technique its distinctive quality.

Your inner dialogue should be written, typed, or recorded. This is your major protection against turning it into just another passive fantasy. The writing will help you remember and digest the experience.

If you type it down, you can use the lowercase setting to type what you are saying and capital letters to record what the other person in your imagination says back to you. In this way, you can just pour the dialogue onto the page as quickly as they happen.

You can also use a recording device and talk and then transcribe them later, making sure to distinguish yourself from the unconscious inner being. This helps to stay in the visionary state and not have it interrupted by our impressions of the external world. Use any method that works best for you.

You should not try to “dress up” your imagination and make it sound impressive in case some other person happened to read or listen to it. It is highly personal and is something you are doing for yourself.

The goal is to experience and record whatever flows out of your unconscious honestly in its raw, spontaneous form.

Another important thing is the physical setting. There must be a room that is quiet and private enough that you can shut off the outside world for a while, at least half an hour. You also need to be alone.

Usage gives meaning

There is a principle in the field of Interaction Design that I often refer to: Usage gives meaning.

The human also finds meaningfulness in Mystery and Imagination is mysterious.

Using your imagination more often (don't confuse it with your passive fantasies) will lead you to enter into dialogues with yourself and others and it will add a lot of meaningfulness to your world and thus to the world around you.