Stream of consciousness

Stream of consciousness refers to the flow of thoughts in the conscious mind. It was a term used by the American psychologist and philosopher William James in 1890.James, William 1890. The principles of psychology.  New York, Henry Holt. James  the entire chapter IX to "The stream of thought".  James said:
"Consciousness, then, [is not] chopped up in bits. Such words as 'chain' or 'train' do not describe it fitly as it presents itself in the first instance. It is nothing jointed; it flows. A 'river' or a 'stream' are the metaphors by which it is most naturally described". (James, p239)

The idea (but not the term) had been noted before James, by the philosopher William Hamilton in his lectures of 1838/9. He described thought as "a series of acts all... connected".Hamilton, William 1859/61.  (Henry L. Mansel and John Veitch eds) Lectures on metaphysics and logic. Edinburgh. A similar idea occurs in early Buddhist writings,In the Digha Nikaya. See Steven Collins, Selfless persons; imagery and thought in Theravāda Buddhism. Cambridge University Press, 1982, page 257. and is sometimes called the mindstream.

Related pages

 Qualia
 Thought
 Consciousness
 Stream of consciousness writing

References

Category:Metaphors
Category:Psychology
Category:Philosophy
Category:Consciousness