Newsletter of Phenomenology

Keeping phenomenologists informed since May 2002

Bergson and the holographic theory of mind

Stephen Robbins

pp. 365-394

Bergson's model of time (1889) is perhaps the proto-phenomenological theory. It is part of a larger model of mind (1896) which can be seen in modern light as describing the brain as supporting a modulated wave within a holographic field, specifying the external image of the world, and wherein subject and object are differentiated not in terms of space, but of time. Bergson's very concrete model is developed and deepened with Gibson's ecological model of perception. It is applied to the problems of consciousness, direct realism, qualia and illusions. The model implies an entirely different basis for memory and cognition, and a brief overview is given for the basis of direct memory, compositionality and systematicity.

Publication details

DOI: 10.1007/s11097-006-9023-1

Full citation:

Robbins, S. (2006). Bergson and the holographic theory of mind. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences 5 (3-4), pp. 365-394.

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