IS PHENOMENAL CONSCIOUSNESS A PRODUCT OF NATURAL SELECTION OR A BY-PRODUCT OF EVOLUTION?

Abstract

The discussion of consciousness is undoubtedly the central topic in philosophy of mind today. However, the various naturalistic approaches to consciousness fail to account for two fundamental questions: i) is consciousness the product of natural selection; ii) does consciousness have a function? In the present paper, I will argue that this failure is fundamentally due to a conceptual and biological evidence error. In this way, I will seek to elucidate a strategy by appealing to complexity and comparative biology, which accounts for i), and which points the way to answer ii).