Memory
Finally, learning is threatened if we no longer trust our memories. This is demonstrated by Socrates’ claim that learning is contingent on recollection shown through the mathematical problem posed to Meno’s enslaved boy. 11 Socrates’ concept of anamnesis as an explanation for knowledge results in an infinite regress problem. Furthermore, the boy probably already had a pre-existing ability to conceptualize shape through his memories of the geometry of the built environment. While anamnesis is empirically far-fetched, the claim that our ability to analyse the world is dependent on memory is very compelling. For example, my ability to conclude that Henry VIII was tyrannical is predicated on remembering learning other cases of tyranny. Indeed, memory is the only truly personal tool for reaching conclu sions about the world. In a social sense, one must choose to trust one’s memory or trust blindly in an external authority which dictates the nature of the past and present. On a personal level, it is not important for every memory to be experientially accurate. This is because we experience our thoughts about people as abstractions. Our conception is not defined by individual memories of people but the overall picture these memories make to form our perception of their essential nature. False memories arise in a few crucial ways. I find myself disagreeing with Aristotle’s claim that memory should be limited to past experience as in each case what we may deem ‘false’ memory can be very useful. 12 Let us say we erroneously remember experiencing an early childhood photo. This does not seem problematic as it brings us closer to the experience. In the case of believing that dreams happened, this too can be very useful because the ideas that appear symbolically in dreams indicate what is most crucial or not yet properly articulated in our lives. 13 Integrating these non-experiential memories into our narratives can generate deeper understanding, if only we suspend our misplaced expectation for experiential accuracy. Furthermore, mixed memories are explained by the fact that their retention indicates that, combined, they provide another important angle on the narrative. Additionally, false memories are often manifestations of repressed fears: these are very useful as when we appreciate their falsehood, we recognize the impediments in our lives. More simply, the fact that we distinguish false memories implies that they are sufficiently out of the ordinary to be given specific attention. Evolutionarily, particularly in the age of itinerant hunter- gatherer communities, the accurate recall of vast swathes of land would have necessitated a high level of experientially ‘true’ memories . Individuals without this faculty would have been at grave disadvantage. Furthermore, in the case of memories about object attributes, falsehood is a smaller issue given the reduced stakes for trusting memories that do not affect identity. Falsehoods can be more easily corrected as we do not have to rely on other unreliable humans but can correct ourselves by returning to the object. Moreover, having established that personal memory is more focused on the essence of things we can also apply this principle to objects. Thus, while we may forget the object’s appearance, we
11 Plato 2004: 114-124. 12 Aristotle 1908: 1 . 13 Freud 1899: 98-105.
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