The Power of Writing Beyond the Enigmas of Minds, Thoughts and Things

“My mind is made up!”

Perhaps, never has a truer statement been made. Let’s break this down.

Let’s first start with the question: What is the mind?

The mind is a quintessential part of our existence. Many of us talk of it casually — like the statement above. But the reality of the mind is that much of it is in fact unmapped. It’s uncharted territory.

There be Dragons in that unknown land.

Curiously, the concept of the mind itself is the product of an abstraction, an image we’ve conjured — imaginary so to say — but then, from where does this image originate?

Often overlooked in this murky mixing of mind, brain, and body — is the role of writing in this equation. Writing, much like many tools transformed into artifacts by our ancestors, is an extension of our minds. Think of it like a recipe, when written down, it becomes a form of memory. Our writings serve as tangible evidence of our thoughts, ideas, and feelings. And in the present age, these thoughts can missile around the world in an instant.

“Share the mind that can’t be read” — says a post-it note on a bulletin board in our house.

The ancient root of the word mind is *men meaning ‘to think.’ In Latin, ‘mens’ referred to ‘mind.’ And, mentalis signified ‘of the mind.’ This is also the etymological root of the English word mental.

In my observations and experiences the concepts of thinking, the mind, and the brain — all get clumped together. It’s as if there is clarity and agreement that this is just the way things are. Many assumptions accepted-as-fact, but, are in fact slippery enigmas and conundrums.

The nature of our mind, its attributes, and its intrinsic workings are nebulous, flitting, and complex. Some components are almost as imaginary as dragons, faeries, and hobbitses.

The ancient roots of ‘think’ and ‘thought’ are derived from *tong- which meant “to think, feel.” This etymology entangles us in more conundrums:

Does a feeling count as a thought, or is a thought a feeling?

Does the act of thinking solely reside within our brains, or does thought extend wider?

And what of memory in the mix? How do memory and re-memory contribute to these conundrums? And wait until we add writing to this equation.

Memory?

Memory is defined as “the faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information.”

To remember means “to have in, or be able to bring to one’s mind, an awareness of someone or something that one has seen, known, or experienced in the past.”

Essentially, to re-mind is to evoke the act of remembering. Of remembering the past. This linguistic meaning aligns with the ancient root of ‘remember’ — *(s)mer which has the same meaning: “to remember.”

The Latin adaptation of *(s)mer is ‘memoria’. This word was intended to encompass the concepts of memory, remembrance, and the faculty of remembering — forming the basis of words like memoir, commemorate, memorial, mourn, and the like.

Within these words (and ancient roots) — the overall focus is distinctly centred on the singular brain and individual. The individual, in turn, remembers and reminds. Does it all happen in the brain alone?

Modern media is full of images of brain scans. These are intended to show the dynamic activity of different brain hemispheres and regions — as we, for example, remember. These activities are generally displayed with colours and shades. But, this is for display purposes only. The brain does not shine in colours. That’s imaginary.

What’s missing from these brain activity images?

The rest of the body. Plus, more questions come to mind:

Are these images showing the mind or just the brain?

Does the mind extend beyond the brain or beyond the individual housing the brain?

There is some illuminating research in recent years, which also connects to ancient thinking, that begins to blow these conundrums up even further. This is ignited when we begin to ‘think about things’ and how ‘things can drive our thinking.’ The relationships with our material culture — of which writing can be included (think ancient tablets).

Artifacts?

An examination of ancient artifacts offers a perspective challenging traditional theories of the mind. Archaeologists and historians uncover artifacts, a term coined from ART (skill) and FACT (a thing done). These things of the past generally prompt some reflection of the minds that crafted them. Before they were artifacts, they served as tools — an extension of the creator, an enactment of their memories.

Consider the example of a recipe again. When written down for future reference, it becomes a form of memory — an extension of the mind. Often, the dependability of such written memory surpasses that of imaged and experienced memory. But then, we also must critically reflect upon this and ensure our treasured recipe (or writing from the past) is not ‘fake news’. And, what other memories may arise as we look over a grandmother’s written recipe? What of an oil splotch on the card?

Going deeper, these reflections complicate our understanding of time, memory, and the mind. Recognizing objects as extensions of minds can often dissolve the stereotypical and prejudicial modes of thought we commonly adopt. Some folks suggest this is a type of bias that we can call: ‘neuro-centrism.’

Yet, this is not an entirely novel concept. Many ancient cultures have fluidly lived within this interplay between objects and minds — and between surrounding environments, critters, and the human mind. Many writing memories on the land with place names and laws and restrictions.

‘Things shape minds, and minds shape things’ — a thought worth keeping-in-mind. This now brings us to “Writing” — such as, what does this make of the act of writing?

Writing as Artifacts?

To write — at the ancient roots of the word — means to scratch, carve, outline, tear at. Essentially to make into the shape of a thing. A letter, or otherwise.

Writing is not simply an individual endeavour. The system of writing — in different languages, cultures, and geographies — takes different shapes, processes and mixed histories. For any writing to have meaning, it requires that meaning be shared amongst more than one person; one brain; one mind. We learn to write and remember how to write, based on what we learn from others.

When we share our writing — like the brain scans in media or the uncovered artifacts — we interact with extensions of our minds (past and present), creating a shared cognition that transcends individual brain-bound thinking. We interact with others’ brains, minds, and thoughts too.

This perspective challenges common neuro-centric approaches and supports recognition (see cognition in there?) of the interconnectedness between our collective minds, our writing, and the broader connected world. Adopting and shifting to this mindset, we can gain a deeper appreciation of how our minds shape our writings and how our writings, in turn, shape our minds. And how all of these can impact our day-to-day choices and decisions.

Let’s add to this paradoxical conundrum the computational power that fuels how Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are taking these collective writings — a collection of minds and things — and mixing and matching them into new combinations. New artifacts.

This brief exploration of the enigmatic ‘mind’ brings us full circle back to the phrase: “My mind is made up.”

Our writings, as extensions of our minds, are instrumental in helping us formulate, express, and share our ‘made-up’ minds, highlighting the powerful connections between writing, minds, and thinking. This can also be fuel for how we make things up in our minds to then write and share.

Making up Your Mind to Write?

Over the past year, I have written a few published articles and stories based on objects, things, and thinking. I also use it to fuel my own personal writing in a Learning Journal. I’ve also had the benefit of working in many communities where ways of being and ways of knowing are navigated differently than the ways in which I grew up and was schooled.

Here are 3 sets of prompts to consider in your next writing project:

1. Interplay of Mind and Matter

Reflect on an object in your life that holds significant meaning or memory for you. Write an article, story or essay that explores how this object extends your mind and cognition. How does it embody your thoughts, emotions, or memories? How does it shape your perception and understanding?

For me, it was writing a story about reading through course textbooks from my mom after she passed. She was in her 70s and doing Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).

2. Collective Cognition Through Writing

Think about a piece of writing that significantly influenced your perspective or understanding of a certain topic. Write an analysis of this piece, focusing on how the writing contributed to your cognitive process. In what ways did it extend your mind? How did it shape your thought processes and beliefs?

3. Challenge Neuro-Centrism

Write an article or story based on a world where ideas of the mind being isolated to the brain is outdated. In this world, thinking is understood to be intertwined with the environment, objects, and collective knowledge. How do you navigate and understand thoughts and thinking in this world? How does this potentially alter the way you might communicate, learn, and perceive yourself and others?

What are you making your mind up about today? And what are you making up in your mind? And where does your body play in this? How about your things?

Did you write it down? Will you write it down?

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This was originally published in The Writing Cooperative on Medium