GETTING THE GODS TO AGREE

I just finished Julian Jaynes’ The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, and I have to say, it’s quite a read and a –half.

I have spoken at length here about this phenomenon, having experienced it sporadically throughout my life (at my personal cost: I’m sure a few of my readers have perhaps arched an eyebrow, shook their heads, and simply kept silent out of politeness for l’il ole wildman me), but Jaynes in his book mentions this happening in a number of cases, including himself.

I’ve copped to it: I’m sure it doesn’t happen to everyone, or there’d be that much less Thorazine in the world. Rest assured, I’m a very stable person. Really. What? Don’t look at me like that. My (nearly) non-existent rap sheet in the real world vouches for it. So does my medicine cabinet (I take nothing stronger than a couple of aspirin a day and vitamins). I got character references, I tells ya! Been voice-free since 2003. But it happens to a lot more people than most will cop to. Because we fear being ostracized.

Enough about me. Onwards.

One item not covered in my prior post, was a key ingredient that is covered in the book. Jaynes stipulates that there had to be a hierarchy among bicameral minds. Think about it: we’re pack animals. Kinda tough to function as such, when everybody has a different ‘voice’ going on. So, structures were formed, alpha wolves duly elected (if that could be called such) as high priests. If you’ve ever been to a concert, a revival (brrhhh!), or any other group activity, you catch the gist of it. Herd mentality.

It’s a great theory, but has some drawbacks. For one, nobody really began dissecting brains (for scientific use, anyways) until the last few centuries. So it’s hard to substantiate it with any physical evidence. Jaynes also bypassed peer review in publication. It’s not widely accepted in academia, and there are varying degrees of skepticism applied in some circles.

Anyways, a big snip from the above link:(snip)”Jaynes asserts that until roughly the times written about in Homer's Iliad, humans did not generally have the self-awareness characteristic of consciousness as most people experience it today. Rather, Jaynes argued that the bicameral individual was guided by mental commands believed to be issued by external "gods"—the commands which were so often recorded in ancient myths, legends and historical accounts; these commands were however emanating from individuals' own minds. This is exemplified not only in the commands given to characters in ancient epics but also the very muses of Greek mythology which "sang" the poems: Jaynes argues that while later interpretations see the muses as a simple personification of creative inspiration, the ancients literally heard muses as the direct source of their music and poetry.
“Jaynes inferred that these "voices" came from the right brain counterparts of the left brain language centres—specifically, the counterparts to Wernicke's area and Broca's area. These regions are somewhat dormant in the right brains of most modern humans, but Jaynes noted that some studies show that auditory hallucinations cause increased activity in these areas of the brain.[3]
“For example, he asserts that, in The Iliad and sections of the Old Testament in The Bible, no mention is made of any kind of cognitive processes such as introspection, and he argues that there is no apparent indication that the writers were self-aware. According to Jaynes, the older portions of the Old Testament (such as the Book of Amos) have little or none of the features of some later books of the Old Testament (such as Ecclesiastes) as well as later works such as The Odyssey, which show indications of a profoundly different kind of mentality—an early form of consciousness.[3]
Jaynes noted that in ancient societies, the corpses of the dead were often treated as though they were still alive (being seated on chairs, dressed in clothing, and even fed food) and he argued that the dead bodies were presumed to be still living and the source of auditory hallucinations (see ancestor worship).[3] This adaptation to the village communities of 100 individuals or more formed the core of religion. Unlike today's hallucinations, the voices of ancient times were structured by cultural norms to produce a seamlessly functioning society.
“In ancient times, Jaynes noted, gods were generally much more numerous and much more anthropomorphic than in modern times, and speculates that this was because each bicameral person had their own "god" who reflected their own desires and experiences.” (End snip)
(Snip)
“Jaynes further argues that divination, prayer and oracles arose during this breakdown period, in an attempt to summon instructions from the "gods" whose voices could no longer be heard.[3] The consultation of special bicamerally-operative individuals, or of casting lots and so forth, was a response to this loss, a transitional era depicted for example in the book of 1 Samuel.
Leftovers of the bicameral mind today, according to Jaynes, include religion, possession, schizophrenia and the general sense of need for external authority in decision-making.”
(End snip)

Also:
(Snip)” Friedrich Nietzsche's explanations of human ethics and moral consciousness in Beyond Good and Evil and On the Genealogy of Morals posit a similar developmental path. The first humans followed a "noble" ethic ("master morality"), but their consciousness was shallow and limited at best. When the Judeo-Christian tradition turned the will in on itself ("slave morality"), as Nietzsche claims, the human soul became complex and intelligent, although it lost the "noble" ethic, which was replaced by an ethic of "ressentiment." Genuine individuality ("immoralism", the Overman) has yet to fully emerge from its socialized heritage; however, the emphasis remains that humans as a social animal preceded humans as individuals, consciously speaking.”
(End snip)

So, in short, humanity longs for those lost days, much like an old man clutches at his spent youth with tremulous hands, watching the wisps of smoke drift away, and fond nostalgia is by no means a proper balm for the maladies of today.

We should live today as today, not as if it were yesteryear: the phantoms of our fathers are but tenous tentacles, easily dispelled by the light of logic. Let us not be second-guessed by legends and mythologies, or old books that lose veracity with each new archeological find. Rather, let us learn from these mistakes, and place them on old shelves, to be dusted off, murmured over, and put back. Today and tomorrow is all we have: that, and the random kindesses we confer upon one another. Love your fellowman, not because of threats, or implied evil, or some egregious tome: rather, love him/her because, as the Bard once said, “If you prick us, do we not bleed?”

Be deity-free.

And don’t let the voices get you. Because words only have the power you give them, and because that whisper in your ear is a coin-flip of the id.

And with that, you have my nickel’s worth. Spend it well, and wisely.