perception

MAR–07–22






Source

Maurice Merleau Ponty
Phenomenology of Perception
1945

Note
Beixi Zhu





The body plays a crucial role in Merleau-Ponty's understanding of space, serving as the "vehicle of being in the world" rather than merely an object within it. This understanding challenges traditional philosophical views that treat space as either a container for objects or a mental construct.

Body shapes Merleau-Ponty's concept of space:

  • The body establishes an "intentional" relationship with space: Unlike objects that are merely "in" space, the body actively inhabits and experiences space through movement and perception. This lived spatiality, termed "bodily space," is not a mental representation but a pre-reflective, practical understanding of our position and possibilities for action in the world.

  • Bodily space is the foundation for objective space: While we can conceive of objective, geometrical space through reflection, this understanding originates from our bodily experience. The body provides the initial framework of up and down, left and right, near and far, which are later abstracted into a more generalized spatial awareness.

  • Movement is key to understanding the body's spatiality: Merleau-Ponty argues that movement is not simply a change in location but an active engagement with the world that reveals the interconnectedness of perception, action, and space. He draws on examples of patients with motor disturbances to illustrate how the loss of fluid, integrated movement disrupts their spatial understanding and ability to interact with objects.

  • The body as a "meaningful core": The body acts as a "general function" that shapes our experience of the world, giving rise to meaning and enabling us to understand our environment in a practical, pre-reflective way.

  • The body bridges the subjective and objective: Merleau-Ponty rejects the traditional separation of mind and body, arguing that the lived body acts as the point of intersection between our subjective experience and the objective world. Through the body, we are both aware of ourselves as situated beings and able to perceive and interact with a world that exists beyond ourselves.

In essence, for Merleau-Ponty, space is not something we think but something we live through our bodies. It is a dynamic, pre-reflective understanding that is fundamental to our existence in the world.