Moshe Menasheof is a writer and philosopher born in Iran and living in Israel who studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University. His book Dreaming and Memory is a research based original theory about perception and memory, in which he attempts to deal with certain problems mentioned in philosophical literature.
What is your work about?
The book is written from a basic philosophical viewpoint whereby man is the creator of worlds in his consciousness. The book presents a comprehensive theory in four essays: On Perception, On Memory, On Sleep, and On Dreaming. In this book I tried to coin a unique language in order to explain various issues in the realm of human consciousness. This language is simple and comprehensible, although significant effort went into its formation and into each and every letter and word. It aims to explain the phenomena of experience, memory, sleep, and dreaming, and also the philosophical issues related to them. One of the guiding principles woven throughout the various essays is functioning – we perceive, remember, sleep, and dream in a way that suits and serves our functioning. Despite the book’s simple and accessible approach, it delves into the depths of human consciousness.
The basic building block of human awareness is a unit of meaning called a discrete. The discrete is the unit of meaning which flashes in the human awareness. It has a meaning, as long as it in the light of awareness. As soon as it leaves the lit area of the stream of consciousness it becomes an inherent and is meaningless. These are contents that the person forgets, but can potentially remember. From this point of view, this book combines philosophical, psychological and cognitive science disciplines.
How does it fit in with your larger research project?
This is the first book in which these theoretical foundations are presented. My book titled “Emotion and Feeling”, based on the same assumptions and strengthening them, so I hope, is forthcoming. I have published essays on the unconscious, on reflex and instinct, on freedom of will and am currently writing an essay on pain. Each of these smaller projects tackles these theoretical foundations from a different aspect.
Who has influenced this work the most?
David Hume’s A TREATISE ON HUMAN NATURE is a big influence on my work as are Immanuel Kant, Ludwig Wittgenstein and others.
Which of your insights or conclusions do you find most exciting?
No one can deny Sigmund Freud’s revolutionary achievements and towering influence. However, current scientific discoveries enable us to see new horizons. I felt a need to find out whether his theories fit well with those discoveries or hinder them in any way. While trying to find a way to bridge philosophical and psychological disciplines with scientific research, and especially – brain research. Presenting a philosophical theory that might be compatible with state of the art scientific discoveries; I had an opportunity to suggest a possible alternative to some foundations of Freud’s theory of human mind.
How is your work relevant to everyday life?
Definitely. Anyone who reads the book can examine the processes of perception, sleep memory and dream in him.
What effect do you hope your work will have?
My hope is that the book will shed a new light on the topics I discuss, and also serve as some sort of guideline for cognitive scientists
What writing practices, methods, or routines do you use, and which have been the most helpful?
I think that just as there is a distinction between writing poetry and writing a critique of poetry or doing comparative research of poetry, so too there should be a distinction between writing philosophy and writing a critique of philosophy. Or doing comparative research of philosophy. These latter pursuits are highly important, but I try to write philosophy and therefore concentrate on creating a new theoretical language.
Moshe Menasheof
Moshe Menasheof is a writer and philosopher born in Iran and living in Israel who studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University. His book Dreaming and Memory is a research based original theory about perception and memory, in which he attempts to deal with certain problems mentioned in philosophical literature.
H. L. Schmidt
H. L. Schmidt currently holds the Becker Fellowship. She has worked as an editor or writer at multiple publications, including Qu, City Magazine, and The Verve. Schmidt is SOPHIA’s Chapter Development Officer and is a doctoral student in the University of Kentucky’s Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation Ph.D. program in Philosophical and Cultural Inquiry, where she focuses on how we develop, communicate, and sustain a personal moral code. She founded the Roanoke chapter of SOPHIA, has presented at a number of conferences, including Philosophy of the City’s 2019 Conference where she presented her research on the role of the public library in a just city. She is part of the leadership of the Philosophers for Sustainability group, where she co-leads the Social Media & Outreach team. At the APA Blog, she edits the Research beat, conducts interviews for the Recent Book Spotlight, and oversees the Diversity & Inclusion beat, which features the Women in Philosophy and Black Issues series. She hosted the Civic Connections podcast featuring conversations with local public policy officials about justice and public affairs. She holds a Master’s in the Humanities from Hollins University where she studied ethics and public policy under Lawrence C. Becker and a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Queens University of Charlotte. Her interests include practical ethics, public policy, existentialism, and utilitarianism. You can follow her on Twitter @theheidifeed.
