Understanding Better by Explaining More: Neuroscience and Narrativity

Abstract

In the dialogue between Paul Ricoeur and Jean-Pierre Changeux, published as "La naturaleza y la norma" (2001), they discussed the relationship between narrative, neuroscience, and philosophy. Ricoeur argues for a semantic dualism that separates discourses on the brain and the lived body, while Changeux seeks an intersection between the two. Although a definitive connection between narrative knowledge and neuronal processes has not yet been achieved, explanatory modeling enriches our understanding of the narrative phenomenon. Ricoeur maintains that narrative is fundamental to the formation of personal identity, arguing that it is constructed through stories about oneself. However, he acknowledges that these stories are not entirely controlled by the individual but are influenced by various factors. We will briefly review the pillars of Ricoeur's narrative theory to highlight their correspondence with current research interests in the field of neuroscience. Likewise, we will explore certain works dedicated to narrative theory from the neuroscience perspective over the past decade, in order to update the state of the art and renew the dialogue between hermeneutics and "neuro-narrative". We will show that the adoption by neurobiology of the vocabulary as well as the interests of certain philosophical and literary humanisms, on the one hand, reshapes the expectations of neuroscience and, on the other hand, tends towards interdisciplinarity. Narratology and neuroscience find points of convergence in narrative cognition, which emerges from neurobiological processes and is incompatible with a static and inflexible view of the human being. The connection between the neurophysiological level and the philosophical level allows for a broader and deeper interpretation of human experience and the formation of personal identity. All in all, the dialogue between narrative, neuroscience, and philosophy reveals the complexity of human beings and their identity, emphasizing the importance of an interdisciplinary perspective to address these issues. Although there are still challenges to establishing a definitive connection between narrative knowledge and neuronal processes, links have been identified that enrich our understanding of the narrative phenomenon and the formation of personal identity. In conclusion, we will suggest that it makes no sense in this current context, more than twenty years after the dialogue between Ricoeur and Changeux, to uphold any kind of dualism.