[Xmca-l] Re: WAYFINDING

[Larry Purss]

I have a moment to reflect further on a key theme of John's article
[Agential Realism, Performative Understandings, and Social Construction:
Giving Our Living Relations to Our Surroundings Their Due]  I would like to
draw attention to the section titled [Resolving Ambiguities,
Indeterminacies and Fluidities in Understanding Speech]
On page 8 John refers to a *prosthetic-tool-text AMBIGUITY* which in a few
paragraphs opens up 3 *aspects* of wayfinding as a fluid dynamic emerging
phenomena. Each of these aspects is NOT pre-existing *things* or *essences*
or *states* which are THEN brought into INTER-action. These 3 *aspects*
emerge WITHIN our INTRA-actions.
The shift from inter-actions TO intra-actions as involving all 3 *aspects*
within a fluid phenomenology is the theme of this sub-section of the paper.

Now the concepts *prosthetics* *tools* and *text* each have critical
significance in our wayfinding orienting,  each becoming visible according
to the different directions of our view. and the *modes* enacted. Here is
John's reflections from page 8 on the different *modes* of being.

*prosthetics*
Our words [wordings] may reside on the side of the agent, on the subjective
side of the subjective/objective CUT and from our *dwelling* in our
wordings over time, we can LEARN how to EXTEND our bodily movements and
sensitivities THROUGH the instrumental MEANS they provide to *reach into*
spheres of experience otherwise unavailable to us. In THIS mode, wordings
become *transparent*  [blind people using a prosthetic device do not need
to *infer* AS IF solving a problem that the path is rough. They experience
it directly AS a rough path]. In a similar WAY by acting prosthetically
THROUGH our words we can also discover the *inner landscape* within which
we and others live our lives.

*tools*
When the flow of activities MEDIATED by our wordings breaks down
[interrupted in some way] or our wordings are separated out from our
wayfinding in some WAY [just as when a tool is damaged to use Heidegger's
example] we become aware of our wordings AS *nameable instruments AS SUCH.
But becoming *tools* these wordings  become unsuitable AS *ready-to-hand*
equipment and become CONSPICUOUS AS *present-to-hand* things, objects,
tools. [i.e. FROM being transparent in their use the wordings become
*opaque* and AS SUCH only have meaning IF placed within an *interpretive
schema*, a conceptual or theoretical *framework*] But in being cut from the
flow of activity WITHIN which the wordings have their *life* the wordings
will loose what unique *performative* functions they had in that unique
flow AND SIMPLY TAKE ON  one size fits all *conventional* meanings and
definitions

*texts*
Texts are the retrospective sedimented *traditions*, the
cultural-historical formations that we are born into. THIS
textual RETROSPECTIVE *mode* is as critical within the prosthetic-tool-text
AMBIGUITY as the prosthetic-tool modes WITHIN the fluid dynamic wayfinding
of our human nature.

John Shotter draws our attention to this AMBIGUITY AS *intra* not *inter*
activity.
I found this way of exploring wayfinding inspirational
Larry


On Mon, Mar 3, 2014 at 8:34 AM, Larry Purss <lpscholar2@gmail.com> wrote:

> I sent an attachment yesterday from John Shotter.
> However, it was not the article I intended to send but rather another
> article he sent on the same theme of wayfinding.
> Here is the link to the intended article.
> I hope it is able to open as I sent as a goggle document but saved to
> Microsoft's Onedrive cloud service
>
> I appreciated John sending me these articles to share with others
> Larry
>