The imagination: the seed of indeterminacy in the writings of Kant, Fichte, and Castoriadis

© 2016 Dr. Jodie Lee HeapBy engaging with the question of ‘What is the Imagination?’, this thesis gives form to the intangible seed of human creation — the seed of indeterminacy that underlies the ontological form of being and of society. Orientated in the form of a comprehensive elucidation of the philosophical writings of Immanuel Kant, Johann Fichte, and Cornelius Castoriadis, this seed of indeterminacy begins to take on varying forms — it is “unknown,” “absolutely incomprehensible,” and “radical.” It is the imagination and the imaginary. Weaving an imagined form between these historical attempts to define the form and function of the imagination, this thesis ruptures the determinacy of these forms, and brings to the fore that which remains unspoken. The experience of these unspoken forms of indeterminacy is crucial — it opens the way towards a new way of thinking about the imagination and the realm of the imaginary. This way of thinking introduces the concept of the “embodied imagination,” which centres the activity of the imagination and imaginary not simply in the psyche, but in being itself — being that always embodies something other, because being is always embodied in a form of relation to something other. This important revelation proposes the seed of indeterminacy underlying human creation is “embodied”. Human creation embodies the “unsayable” indeterminacy of being and of others, of the world, and of the cosmos. While at times this proposal may appear obtuse, it simply highlights the significance of this presentation, and the difficulty in capturing and articulating the indeterminacy of the essence of the imagination. But, in those poignant moments when the indeterminacy of the imagination can be grasped, one is propelled into a moment of truth, connection, and creation