Synthesis philosophica, Vol. 40 No. 1, 2025.
Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.21464/sp40105
Enculturation of an Animal
Zdravko Radman
; Zagreb / Zürich
Sažetak
Once we have made a sound theoretical claim that the mind is embodied, and once we have agreed about the profound impact culture has in shaping our embodied behavior, it follows that embodiment and enculturation co-evolve and are cooperative rather than contrastive. A fundamental argument supporting such conclusion is that of evolutionary continuity, and the gradual progression from simple to more complex forms of life, without cessation or gap. Such an approach may be taken to soften the existing boundaries of identity that set us and (animal) otherness apart in an exclusive way. This, in turn, facilitates the conclusion that, not only in principle, living organisms simpler than ours are also capable of experiencing and behaving in a way not unaffiliated to ours. Enculturation then no longer appears as uniquely human. The “animal turn” confronts us with massive evidence that justifies the use of the terms “animal sentience” and “animal cognition” – also “animal culture”. Here it will be exemplified by brief survey of the animal capacity to perform rudimentary arithmetic operations. If so, enculturation is by no means an exclusive privilege of homo sapiens and extends down to the elementary (corporeal) levels of the living.
Ključne riječi
dualism; continuity; graduality; otherness; embodiment; enculturation; animal culture; bio-cultural co-evolution
Hrčak ID:
332052
URI
Datum izdavanja:
11.6.2025.
Posjeta: 556 *