Updated reference for forthcoming reprint of "Existential universals" article

My article "Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis", first published as (see also here):

Tønnessen, Morten (2017). Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis. Chinese Semiotic Studies 13(4): 381–398. Published online November 16th 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/css-2017-0022.

will as mentioned earlier be reprinted in the anthology Transcending Signs (for which it was initially intended). Updated reference for the chapter to be reprinted:

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming. Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis. To be reprinted in Eero Tarasti, Sayantan Dasgupta and Paul Forsell (eds.), Transcending Signs – Essays in Existential Semiotics. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. 

Abstract for IHSRC2019: "Uexküllian phenomenology and existential phenomena"

Today I have composed and submitted the abstract below for the International Human Sciences Research Conference 2019, to be held in Molde, Norway, in June, and which has the theme "Joy, suffering and death - understanding contrasting existential phenomena in the lifespan".

Title: Uexküllian phenomenology and existential phenomena

·       Individual presentation

·       Author/presenter: Morten Tønnessen (Professor of philosophy)

·       Affiliation: Department of social studies, University of Stavanger

“Uexküllian phenomenology” is the phenomenology that is implicit in the Umwelt theory of theoretical biologist Jakob von Uexküll (1864–1944). This is a theory that posits that all living beings relate to meaning by using and relating to signs in their environment, and that all humans and animals are endowed with an Umwelt, i.e. a subjective, experiential lifeworld. A key advantage with making use of an Uexküllian perspective is that Umwelt theory, and the Uexküllian phenomenology derived from it, is applicable in the study of humans as well as animals.

Existential phenomena are usually regarded exclusively human phenomena, and yet few would doubt that many animals too experience e.g. joy and suffering. In normative ethics, joy and suffering are typically presented as central experiential features of sentience. While both humans and individuals of many animal species experience some of “the same” existential phenomena, it is clear that there are at times significant differences with regard to how these phenomena appear to different species and also to different individuals within the same species.

One reason why it is important to understand how existential phenomena are perceived, felt and lived through, is that such phenomena evidently affect human and animal welfare. The contributions Uexküllian phenomenology can make in this context is first, that it makes it possible to study human and animal experiences in all its diversity and complexity within one and the same framework, and second – in extension of this – that it is suitable for studying human–animal interaction and relations. 

"Existential universals" revised

I have just carried out a small revision of my paper "Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis", which will soon appear in Chinese Semiotic Studies.

Abstract: "Existential universals: A link between biosemiotics and existential semiotics"

Existential universals: A link between biosemiotics and existential semiotics

Morten Tønnessen

Abstract submitted for the symposium Nordic Semiotic Paradigms – NASS 25 Years: "Where do Cognitive, Bio- and Existential Semiotics Meet?"

Associate professor at Department of Health Studies, University of Stavanger

Researcher in the grant Dynamical Zoosemiotics and Animal Representations (Department of Semiotics, University of Tartu)

The ten steps to a semiotics of being detailed in Tønnessen 2010 (and said to be “pertinent to various sub-fields at the conjunction of semiotics of nature (biosemiotics, ecosemiotics, zoosemiotics) and semiotics of culture – semioethics and existential semiotics included”) start out with the following three points:

1) Semiotics of being entails inquiry at all levels of biological organization, albeit, wherever there are individuals, with emphasis on the living qua individuals (integrated biological individualism).

2) An Umwelt is the public aspect (cf. the Innenwelt, the private aspect) of a phenomenal/experienced world that is organism-specific (rather than species-specific) and ultimately refers to an existential realm.

3) Existential universals at work on Earth include seeking out the edible, dwelling in a medium, holding a phenomenal world (possibly an Umwelt) and being endowed with life, and followingly being mortal.

This paper will present the notion of existential universals, and sketch how these can be seen as a link between biosemiotics and existential semiotics. Though existential universals can be articulated and conceptualized in a variety of ways, and any chronological exposition may well be at least in part arbitrary, a list of such universal features of life will be presented. Not all semiosis is conceptualized as existential, i.e., by nature experientially related to the existence of a being. Consequently, not all ‘biosemiotic universals’ qualify as existential universals. All existential universals, however, are necessarily universals of biosemiosis.

What is it like to be a human being? (In other words: What is the human condition?). Before we can answer that question, we have to answer a more general question, the answer to which has foundational validity for the human question, namely: What is it like to be a living being? In this paper I will allude to sixteen answers to that question.

Reference

Tønnessen, Morten 2010. Steps to a semiotics of being. Biosemiotics 3.3: 375-392.

Update on book chapter "Existential universals"

A month or two ago I was in contact with the associate editors of Eero Tarasti's forthcoming anthology on transcendental signs and existential semiotics, Richard Littlefield and Paul Forsell. I then sent a slightly updated version of my contribution, "Existential universals: Biosemiosis and existential semiosis", with few changes made apart from updated affiliation. The volume will likely appear in 2013 (Paris-based Mouton de Gruyter is the publisher).

Existential universals - update

Transcending Signs - Essays around Eero Tarasti's existential semiotics is in progress. My contribution, "Existential universals - biosemiosis and existential semiosis", is now pending re-submission OR revision, depending on my decision. This is due January 15th.

The editors of the book, to be published by Mouton de Gruyter, are Paul Forsell and Rick Littlefield.