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For this issue of Metodo inviting us to conjoin linguistics and phenomenology, we wish to briefly retracesome of the dimensions that seem to define their both delicate and essential relations. We will do so not in a doxographical or historical fashion, but by working towards a clarification, from our positions in the field of the language sciences, of the necessary intrication of their theoretical stakes. This clarification can lead to a marked reorientation of both phenomenology and linguistics, right up to their conceptual origins. To that end, it seems necessary to us to situate our interrogation in a space where phenomenological reflection immediately meets the semiotic perspective – understood here in its broad sense as going beyond the fact of language and languages or the reanimation of any already instituted signs in order to consider a sort of primordial semioticity that is always imminent in experiences themselves oriented, solicited and borne by semiogeneses.

Articulating simplicity and complexity is fundamental for any knowledge endeavor. This chapter carries a critical examination of several possible options in linguistics. Starting with the ancient debate between analogist and anomalist grammar schools, we address the following issues: the nomothetic approach as a reduction to simplicity, and research of determinant laws; complexity, replayed in the models of Complex Systems; the notion of emergence, between determinant and reflective judgment; the assessment of Complex Systems as an apparent middle path to Semiolinguistics; a discussion of linguistic theories directly concerned with the issues of meaning and complexity.

Constructivism, emergence : a semantic and thematic analysis. Construction, emergence : two recurring terms in the field of contemporary cognitive sciences. This non technical study begins by making explicit some of their most general semantic and thematic dimensions. Two major conceptual families are thus characterized, respectively called assembly constructivism and genetic constructivism, in connection to the history of logic and computation, on the one hand, and to the theories of the genesis of forms, on the other hand. More specific views are next presented, concerning the evolution of research in the past fifteen years : connectionist approaches, work on the emergence of symbolic functions, revival of Gestalt conceptions of form and organization. It becomes increasingly evident, throughout a large interdisciplinary area, that the notions of construction and emergence are inseparably bound to each other., Construction, émergence : deux termes récurrents dans le champ des sciences cognitives contemporaines. Cette étude non technique commence par expliciter certaines de leurs dimensions sémantiques et thématiques les plus générales. On caractérise ainsi deux grandes familles de conceptions, appelées respectivement constructivismes assembleurs et génétiques, liées à l’histoire de la logique et du calcul, d’une part, aux théories de la genèse et de l’individuation des formes, d’autre part. On présente ensuite des vues plus spécifiques sur l’évolution des recherches dans les quinze dernières années : problématiques connexionnistes, travaux sur l’émergence des fonctions symboliques, relance des conceptions gestaltistes de la forme et de l’organisation. Il apparaît qu’à travers un vaste champ interdisciplinaire, les deux notions de construction et d’émergence se trouvent désormais nouées l’une à l’autre de façon indissociable., Visetti Yves-Marie. Constructivismes, émergences : une analyse sémantique et thématique. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°39, 2004/2. Des lois de la pensée aux constructivismes. pp. 229-259.

Le Continu est pour la sémantique la première des ressources, puisque les langues et les discours le créent, le déploient, et le présupposent d’une indéfinité de façons (expérientiels-corporels, pratiques-sémiotiques, textuels, etc.). Partant de considérations classiques sur la mise en œuvre du continu, on déclinera quelques modes plus radicaux de son intervention : structuralisme dynamique dans la ligne de R. Thom, linguistique cognitive, modèles dynamiques de polysémie, théories des formes sémantiques. Continuousness is for linguistic semantics a vital resource, since languages create, display, and presuppose it in an indefinite number of ways (e.g. bodily/experiential, semiotic/praxeologic, textual, etc.). After reviewing some of the classical issues on the uses of continuousness, we will go through a presentation of some more radical uses of the concept in semantics : dynamic structuralism in the wake of R. Thom’s works, schemes in cognitive grammars, dynamic models of polysemy, and, more recently, theories of semantic forms.

We suggest a prospective scenario of emergence and evolution of language which radically differs from the dominant neo-darwinian stance. The guiding principle is that of a synergy between various symbolic forms and activities. Starting with the analogy between money and language, viewed as ‘general equivalents', we define a model of Symbolic Economies which features the gradual unfolding of semiotic forms mediating the differentiation of social groups, roles and values. The aim is to account for the shared origin of practical and fictional dimensions of social life, where the ritualisation of behaviour goes hand in hand with the development of semiotic games and genres (especially of narrative kind)., On propose un scénario théorique de l'émergence et de l'évolution du langage bien différent des scénarios néo-darwiniens aujourd'hui répandus. Le principe adopté est celui d'une synergie nécessaire entre plusieurs formes et activités symboliques. En s'inspirant notamment de l'analogie de la monnaie et du langage, vus comme des ‘équivalents généraux', on introduit le modèle simplifié d'une économie symbolique, qui vise à figurer le dégagement progressif de formes sémiotiques jouant un rôle pivot dans la différenciation de valeurs, de rôles, de groupes sociaux. On cherche ainsi à rendre compte de l'origine et de l'intrication des dimensions pratiques et fictives propres à toute interaction sociale, la ritualisation des conduites allant de pair avec la formation de genres ou de jeux sémiotiques (notamment narratifs).

Theories and Models of Expression : a Microgenetic Perspective. We assess the contribution of microgenetic thinking to “expressivist” and semiotic theories of perception. Three layers of expression are distinguished : (i) originary expressivity of experience, (ii) action as expression, and (iii) expression as institution, this latter layer involving the necessity of re-expression and of reprise, along with a diversification of genres and modalities (virtual/ actual, possible / necessary). As we proceed, we delineate the core issues of “expressivism” and define a generic this latter layer involving the necessity of re-expression and of reprise, along with a diversifica-tion of genres and modalities (virtual/ actual, possible / necessary). As we proceed, we delineate the core issues of “ expressivism” and define a generic framework on which to base a theory of expression. Mathematical models of actualization and theories of thematic field and of thematization provide in this respect valuable conceptual tools. The question of reprise is then restated as that of a necessary diversification of mod-alities (whether empowering or constraining) relative to different “ phases” of micro-genesis, each of which potentially involving its own modes of perception and memory. The continuous and dynamical setting laid out in the article enables us to account for various kinds of genericity that are constitutively correlated with different phases of activity (modes of organization) co-occurring in the field. Critical in this respect is the genetic concept of anticipation which subtends varying motivation building upon protention or forward tension. Depending on the phase of microgenesis, it becomes possible to highlight different modal and temporal characters involved in the constitution of forms in the field. A series of diagrams illustrates various stages of this development, which culminates in instituted semiosis and enunciation, each intrinsically related to, but distinct of, its expressive dimensions., À titre de première étape dans un travail théorique sur les modèles et pensées de l’expression, on discute de l'apport des approches microgénétiques aux conceptions expressivistes et sémiotiques de la perception. En se tenant en deçà de toute question spécifique de narration ou d'actance, on s'efforce de décliner trois plans d'une problématique expressiviste, menant par degrés jusqu'aux sémioses instituées : expressivité originaire de l'expérience, action comme expression, et expression comme institution, introduisant alors l'exigence de la réexpression et de la reprise, avec la diversification des genres et des modalités (virtuel/ actuel, possible/ nécessaire). Il s'en dégage une problématique-noyau, et un imaginaire scientifique, appuyés à une réflexion sur les modèles de l’actualisation. On s'inspire pour cela des modèles de champ thématique et de thématisation développés antérieurement. Le problème de la reprise se reformule comme celui d'une nécessaire diversification des modalités (plus ou moins capacitantes ou contraignantes), en relation à différentes phases microgénétiques, dont chacune peut sous-tendre des modes propres de perception et de mémorisation. À l'opposé de conceptions générativistes de l'actualisation, souvent solidaires d'a priori formalistes ou substantialistes, on expose ainsi les principes d'une problématique continuiste et dynamiciste des généricités, indexées sur différentes phases de constitution d'une activité. Inhérente à ce dispositif, l'anticipation, avant que de se décliner en plan ou prédiction, est motivation passant d'un niveau à l'autre, et aussi protention, tension vers un à-venir. Le principe théorique est alors d'accentuer, en fonction des phases microgénétiques, la qualification modale et temporelle de ce qui n'est éventuellement que motivation (préparation, sensibilisation) pour le déploiement de formations dans un champ. Présentés en annexe, des diagrammes illustrent certaines étapes de ce parcours, qui débouche sur les sémioses instituées et l'énonciation, organiquement liées – mais non confondues – à leurs dimensions expressives., Rosenthal Victor, Visetti Yves-Marie. Modèles et pensées de l’expression : perspectives microgénétiques. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°50, 2008/3. Religion et Cognition. pp. 177-252.

This paper, which is a synthesis of several previous publications, analyzes some of the principles according to which it is possible to build an analogy, or even a continuity, between language and perception. Several misleading options are identified, arising from erroneous models of perception, and the non-taking into account of polysemy as a fundamental property of language. Starting from the example of prepositions, we challenge these difficulties, in order to put forth general semantic principles, applicable to all categories of words and constructions. The key question of the relation between spatial and less- or non spatial uses of words will lead us to come back to the Gestalt and phenomenological theories of perception and action, which more than ever offer irreplaceable insights for semantics. We then sketch a radically dynamical theoretical framework, which gives a fundamental role to the mathematical concepts of instability. On this basis, the microgenesis of what we call Semantic Forms can be distributed between three layers of meaning, or ‘stabilization and development phases’, named motifs, profiles, and themes. Taken together, they shape linguistic structure and semantic activity. They apply in exactly the same way in lexical as well as in grammatical semantics, whose distinction is reassessed in conclusion.

International audience; Three levels of intelligibility ought to be taken into account when one considers the origin and evolution of language: the level of the individual (as biological or psychological entity), the level of (proto-)linguistic forms and semiotic practices, and the level of social structures. In the present talk we shall be specifically concerned with the latter two dimensions of the evolution of language and symbolic activities. We contend that: (i) the psychological domain (beliefs, desires, abilities, dispositions) is inconceivable in the absence of a constitutive relation to social stakes and practices (especially various public semiotic practices); (ii) linguistic structures and functions cannot be understood in the absence of a broader perspective on the symbolic realm. Thus, in contrast to popular mentalistic wisdom, we put stress on public dimensions of symbolic activities, assuming that private dimensions can only be understood in regard to their constitutive relationship to the former. The precedence of the social and the semiotic over the psychological implies inter alia that there may not be such a thing as initial (or zero) cognitive state independent of our very social being. This applies to the individuation of psychological states (mental states, beliefs, desires) as well as to general dispositions and skills (e.g. postures, gestures, physiognomies, artefacts).The primary step in this study consisted in elaborating the framework of Symbolic Economies provisionally defined as complex systems in which transactions aim at assigning and transferring symbolic values (e.g. values of acts, roles, or even other signs) through a co-emerging semiotic medium. Our guiding intuition was that the functions of human languages should be viewed in the social context in which “exogamic” groups co-exist by means of ritualized “protocols” (gift, exchange, alliance, payment, sanction). All these protocols imply an exchange of symbols such as objects, gestures, or (proto)linguistic signs whose symbolic values arise from their involvement in ritualized actions which, in turn, could not be acknowledged or accomplished without those symbols. In this respect the analogy between money and language (which is recurrent in Western culture) constitutes a highly instructive field of inquiry (Lassègue et al., 2004a, b). Although money far postdates the emergence of language, uses of money unveil social, cognitive and semiotic constraints or resources which are presumably also involved in linguistic activity. Indeed, both money and language provide a “general equivalent” for an open series of occurrences by: (i) giving rise to abstract and fictive values in a sensible medium, and (ii) creating a universal reference system, which is fictive in nature, to regulate all emergent values, including the most basic and individualistic ones. The functional analogy is all the more valid if we depart from a strictly utilitarian point of view in economy, and a strictly conceptual / referential view in semantics. Our presentation will focus on the semiotic and (to some extent) linguistic conditions of social emergence of values, action types and categorical networks. Our proposal can be summarized as follows:• The evolution toward modern languages is intimately tied to the emergence of new social and symbolic systems, embodied in new practices. If modern language indeed emerged from a proto-language it was presumably not in order to better communicate an already established proto-knowledge but to sustain the development of new emerging needs and practices.• The origin and nature of primary values can neither be accounted for within a strictly utilitarian framework, nor in the framework of functional-adaptive theories of social evolution; although the adaptive dimension may obviously play a role (though often by hindsight), it can hardly account for the meaning and the effects of major creative inventions in technological, institutional or semiotic fields (coinage, print, use of grammar and of language dictionary, WWW). We are thus led to suggest that right from the beginning utility belonged to a network of values and stakes, which were non-utilitarian in nature. Moreover, as utility is constantly reassessed, a major shift of attention towards new semiotic media is accordingly required. New emerging values and transactions involve not only practical aspects in which a natural utility can be invoked, but also fictive entities, roles and institutions (e.g. spirits, gods, clans, totems, status etc.) mediating utilitarian stakes.• “Practical” and “mythical” dimensions are intertwined and hardly discernable in regard to the narrative-prescriptive constitution of the mankind, whether at the individual or social level. The great variety of socio-linguistic roles (and their corresponding abstract grammatical correlates – e.g. case roles) could never emerge and evolve in the absence of this intricate unity of the practical and the mythical.• The same holds with respect to the formation of social values, and to some extent, with respect to categories (whether concerning the social or the natural realm).• The “symbolic” is not what occurs once the logico-conceptual or causal thought proved unsuccessful. Rather, it is what in certain conditions brings the latter to existence. And, in any case, the essential stakes are always relative to the “symbolic”.• The “symbolic” is not a private competence generated by special brain powers and environmental conditions. The “symbolic” intrinsically relies on public semiotic activity, which itself becomes object of interest.• Human social phenomena do not emerge from the interaction between individuals granted with preprogrammed goals and ways of acting. In most cases, the occurrence of these phenomena depends on a social and semiotic “trigger” which is never under the control of a single individual.Two examples substantiate this proposal. First, we suggest that the grammaticalization of generic action structure may best be viewed as a part of a socio-semiotic process that involves ritualized scenarios and norms. Thus instead of focussing on syntax, that would be viewed as an autonomous and purely contingent generative device, we search for basic recurrent scenarios which instantiate the most generic dimensions of action and semiotically mediated transmission of values between agents and domains. In this context, the distinction between real and fictive agents appears to be useless, due in part to the intricate relationship between what pertains to mythical, practical, and ritual spheres, as many ethnologists described in regard to various so-called “archaic societies” (opening the way to the recognition of globally very same structures in any society). Studies in narratology (e.g. folktales) further illustrate this issue. Second, we argue that similar considerations apply with respect to the foundation of taxonomies (including natural kinds). In contrast to naively naturalistic and objectivist theses which assume that cultural differences are merely contingent on ecological variations, we view these variations as intrinsic to symbolic modes of thought that organize the categorical apparatus of various “primitive societies”. Even so-called natural kinds directly express the permanent interplay of perceptual, ritual, therapeutical, geographical, meteorological, cosmic, mythical and social dimensions of life. In a word, the emergence of modern languages may neither amount to an adaptive response nor be contingent on a singular autonomous event (be it biological or social), but should instead be viewed as a major part and outcome of a self-generating web of social needs and semiotic means. Lassègue, J., Rosenthal, V., Stewart, J., Visetti, Y.-M. (2004a). “Symbolic economies” and the origin of language. 5th International Conference on Evolution of Language, Leipzig, April 2004.Lassègue, J., Rosenthal, V., Stewart, J., Visetti, Y.-M. (2004b). A critical comparison between Money and Language. Language, Culture & Mind Conference, Portsmouth, July 2004.

On Sensorimotor Contingencies of Enaction. The old philosophical controversy between empiricism and intellectualism appears to be still alive in contemporary cognitive science. It is clearly perceptible in the opposition between externalist and internalist epistemologies, and has been recently exacerbated by the development of enactive theories more or less loosely inspired by the work of Francisco Varela. Our commentary bears mainly on certain versions of enactivist and externalist theories (Lenay, Noë). While we sympathize with their anti-intellectualist and (partly) non-representationist stance, we criticize their core concept of sensorimotor contingencies which reinstates a fairly straightforward empiricism, and fails to acknowledge the crucial status of meaning and form in perception and action. The discussion hinges around the following issues : the constitution of lived body, status of form and field, of organization and emergence, of microgenesis and phases of action, and, finally, of anticipation and skill. We emphasize the indispensable status of meaning, in both its semiotic and social aspects, and contend that meaning determines any possibility of discriminating between interior and exterior., L’affrontement philosophique entre empirisme et intellectualisme se continue dans les sciences cognitives contemporaines. Il se retrouve aujourd’hui dans le débat entre épistémologies externalistes et internalistes, avivé par le développement récent de théories énactivistes d’inspiration varelienne. Ce sont certaines de ces théo-ries, présentées comme externalistes et énactivistes, que nous commentons ici (Lenay, Noë). Tout en nous accordant à leur perspective anti-intellectualiste, et dans une cer-taine mesure non-représentationnaliste, nous en critiquons le concept de contingence sensorimotrice, qui signe le retour à un empirisme simple, méconnaissant le statut originaire de la forme et du sens. L’exposé aborde les points suivants : constitution du corps propre, formes et champs, organisation et émergence, microgenèse et phases de l’action, anticipations et savoir-faire. Nous soulignons en conclusion le caractère iné-liminable des questions de sens, ainsi que leur nature sémiotique et sociale, qui conditionne toute éventuelle distinction entre intérieur et extérieur., Visetti Yves-Marie, Rosenthal Victor. Les contingences sensori-motrices de l’énaction. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°43, 2006/1. Internalisme / externalisme. pp. 105-116.

International audience; The comparison between language and money is recurrent in Western culture. But does this analogy provide a starting point for a deeper understanding of language activity, viewed as a Symbolic Form? Although money far postdates language in human history, the use of money reveals social, cognitive and semiotic constraints or resources which presumably are also involved in linguistic activity. The analogy is even more valid if we depart from a strictly utilitarian point of view in economy (Aglietta & Orlean), and from a strictly conceptual/referential view in semantics. Indeed, both money and language provide a “general equivalent” for an open series of occurrences by : (i) elaborating abstract and fictive values in a sensible medium, and (ii) creating a fictive but universal and socially constituted reference system which regulates all emergent values, including the most basic and individualistic ones. From this point of view, several functions of language appear to be analogous to those classically assigned to money (evaluation, diffusion, payment, saving).Our proposal is to link the emergence of languages and the emergence of what we call “symbolic economies”. We provisionally define “symbolic economy” as a complex system in which transactions aim at assigning and transferring symbolic values (e.g. values of acts, roles, or even other signs) through a co-emerging semiotic medium. Our guiding intuition is that functions of human languages should be viewed within the social context in which distinct groups co-exist by means of ritualized protocols (gift, exchange, alliance, payment, sanction). All these protocols involve an exchange of symbols (objects, gestures, or (proto)linguistic signs) whose values stem from their involvement in ritualized actions, which cannot be recognized or achieved without these symbols.The analogy between language and money may however turn out to be unenlightening if we do not take into account: (i) the archeological and anthropological findings showing various types and functions of “money” in archaic societies, mostly related to social obligations and not only to the exchange of goods; (ii) the work in theoretical economy describing the concurrent emergence of different “currencies” as a result of a mimetic behavior of agents, rather than an application of pre-established values; (iii) the theories in which language activity is primarily considered as a way of evaluating/categorizing actions and roles, and of ‘buying' social positions by trading relevant symbols.In sum, we (i) describe functional analogies between money and language in human transactions, (ii) present a non-utilitarian “symbolic economies” framework in which such analogies become more effective, (iii) sketch some of the elementary transactions on which a symbolic economy could be based, and (iv) discuss the possible relationship between this speculative model and some general aspects of linguistic categories (e.g. case roles).

International audience; The comparison between language and money is recurrent in Western culture (up to Saussure's famous comparison between linguistic signs and coins). More recently, in the 1970's, some philosophers emphasized the concomitant appearance in ancient Greece of specific philosophical categories, and of monetary exchange using struck coins (e.g. Sohn-Rethel); or described money as a general model for any semiotic process involving the creation of values (Goux).The question of language origin has dramatically evolved in recent years, giving raise to many competing models, none of which however trying to take into account these homologies, first developed in a merely philosophical and sociological perspective. This is what we intend to do, by linking the emergence of language and the emergence of what we call “symbolic economies”. We provisionally define “symbolic economy” as a complex system in which transactions aim at assigning and transferring symbolic values (e.g. values of acts, roles, or even other signs) through a co-emerging semiotic medium. Our guiding intuition is that functions of human languages should be viewed within the social context in which “exodemic” groups co-exist by means of ritualized “protocols” (gift, exchange, alliance, payment, sanction). All these protocols imply an exchange of symbols like objects, gestures, or (proto)linguistic signs, whose symbolic values stem from their involvement in ritualized actions which, on the other hand, cannot be recognized or achieved without the above mentioned symbols.Although money far postdates language in human history, the use of money reveals social, cognitive and semiotic constraints or resources which presumably are also involved in linguistic activity. The analogy is even more valid if we depart from a strictly utilitarian point of view in economy (Aglietta & Orlean), and a strictly conceptual/referential view, in semantics. Indeed, both money and language provide a “general equivalent” for an open series of occurrences by: (i) elaborating abstract and fictive values in a sensible medium, and (ii) creating a universal reference system, of a fictive character, which regulates all emergent values, including the most basic and individualistic ones. On this viewpoint, the traditional functions of language can be analyzed by analogy to those classically assigned to money (evaluation, diffusion, payment, saving).The analogy between language and money may however turn out to be spurious if we do not take into account: (i) the archeological and anthropological findings showing various types and functions of “money” in archaic societies, mostly related to the sacred; (ii) the work in theoretical economy describing the concurrent emergence of different “currencies” as a result of a mimetic behavior of agents rather than an application of pre-established values; (iii) the theories in which language activity is primarily considered as a way of evaluating/categorizing actions and roles, and of ‘buying' social position by affording certain symbolic values.In summary, we (i) describe analogies between functional roles of money and language in human transactions, (ii) present a non-utilitarian “symbolic economy” framework in which such analogies become more effective, (iii) discuss some of the elementary transactions on which this kind of symbolic economy could be based, and (iv) try to clarify the relationship between this speculative model and grammatical categories of human languages (e.g.case roles).

Beyond the fact that defining a class of 'verbs of movement’ is difficult in practice, it appears that studying them gives rise to a diversity of approaches (formal ontology, cognitive psychology, semantic features, case roles). By re-examining oppositions such as verb-framed / satellite framed, objectivation / subjectivation, inaccusative / inergative, we will show that these attempts are dependent upon inadequate conceptions of movement and space. Numerous linguistic observations indeed indicate that movement (and space) should not be involved in semantics on the basis of a primary model essentially made of topologies and displacements, which would be constituted without any relation to other praxeological, qualitative, and intentional dimensions. It appears that all these intricate aspects — all the more so as they are co-constituted by language activity — cannot be simply dissociated into, for instance, path and manner, nor properly assessed just by adding a coding of case roles. By referring to a quite different model of perception and action, we show that the 'verbs of movement’ (as basic as monter, partir, sortir) work out their semantics by specifying, through a variety of grammatical constructions, the 'dynamics of the constitution’ of a phenomenological, practical and discursive field. Such an approach also sheds light on the genericity of verb meaning, allowing its transposition to the so-called functional or figurative meanings., RÉSUMÉ: En pratique difficile à définir, la classe des 'verbes de mouvement’ donne lieu jusque dans les travaux récents à des approches diverses (ontologies formelles, psychologies cognitives, traits sémantiques, rôles casuels). En revenant sur des oppositions telles que 'verb-framed’ vs 'satelliteframed’, 'objectivation’ vs 'subjectivation’, 'inaccusativité’ vs 'ergativité’, nous montrons que ces tentatives sont fondamentalement liées à des conceptions inadéquates de l’espace et du mouvement. De nombreuses observations linguistiques indiquent en effet que le mouvement (et l’espace) ne devraient pas être impliqués en sémantique à partir d’un modèle fait en premier lieu de topologies et de déplacements, supposés donnés sans relation constitutive à des anticipations de nature praxéologique, qualitative et intentionnelle. Une codification de ces anticipations en termes de rôles casuels ne convient pas non plus. En prenant appui sur une toute autre conception microgénétique de la perception et de l’action, nous montrons comment les 'verbes de mouvement’ (aussi basiques que monter, partir, sortir) contribuent à spécifier, au travers d’une variété de constructions, la 'dynamique de constitution’ d’un champ qui est à la fois phénoménologique, pratique et discursif. La généricité de la signification verbale, attestée par les transpositions à des emplois dits fonctionnels ou figurés, s’éclaire du même coup., Cadiot Pierre, Lebas Frank, Visetti Yves-Marie. Verbes de mouvement, espace et dynamiques de constitution. In: Histoire Épistémologie Langage, tome 26, fascicule 1, 2004. Langue et espace : retours sur l'approche cognitive. pp. 7-42.

International audience; Lehar (rightly) insists on the volumetric character of our experience of space. He claimsthat three-dimensional space stems from the functional three-dimensional topology of the brain. Buthis “Gestalt Bubble” model of volumetric space bears an intrinsically static structure—a kind oftheater, or “diorama,” bound to the visual modality. We call attention to the ambivalence of Gestaltlegacy and question the status and precise import of Lehar's model and the phenomenology thatmotivates it.

What is left of representation ? In the introduction to the set of articles concerning Representations, the contemporary use of the notion is described, once has been reminded the historical emergence of the notion in the 17th century. The debates that have taken place in the sixties of the 20th century concerning a new usage of the notion are then evoked and compared to the new directions followed by the authors of the articles presented in the sequel., L'introduction au dossier «Représentations » dresse un état des lieux de l'usage actuel de la notion, après un bref rappel historique portant sur la naissance de la problématique représentationnaliste au 17ème siècle. Après avoir évoqué les débats ayant pour thème la reprise de la notion à partir des années 60 du 20eme siècle, les auteurs s'attachent à décrire les nouvelles pistes empruntées par les auteurs des articles du dossier qui, chacun à leur manière, renouvelle l'interprétation de la notion., Lassègue Jean, Visetti Yves-Marie. Que reste-t-il de la représentation ? Pour introduire au dossier. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°35, 2002/2. Représentations : Quelques aperçus / Longo : Laplace, Turing et le « jeu de l'imitation ». pp. 7-25.

The article is focused on the notion of representation: its use is described at its birth in the classical age and in contemporary cognitive science where its meaning is so loose that is has only some vague connection with the notion of information., L'article fait le point sur l'usage de la notion de représentation en sciences cognitives en rappelant l'origine de la notion à l'époque classique et en montrant que son usage est aujourd'hui si lache qu'il n'entretient plus que de vagues rapports d'analogie avec la notion d'information

Is mental imagery pictorial? In Pylyshyn's view no empirical data provides convincing support to the “pictorial” hypothesis of mental imagery. Phenomenology, Pylyshyn says, is deeply deceiving and offers no explanation of why and how mental imagery occurs. We suggest that Pylyshyn mistakes phenomenology for what it never pretended to be. Phenomenological evidence, if properly considered, shows that mental imagery may indeed be pictorial, though not in the way that mimics visual perception. Moreover, Pylyshyn claims that the “pictorial hypothesis” is flawed because the interpretation of “picture-like” objects in mental imagery takes a homunculus. However, the same point can be objected to Pylyshyn's own conclusion: if imagistic reasoning involves the same mechanisms and the same forms of representation as those that are involved in general reasoning, if they operate on symbol-based representations of the kind recommended by Pylyshyn (1984) and Fodor (1975), don't we need a phenomenological homunculus to tell an imagined bear from the real one?

Gestalt theory : critical overview and contemporary relevance. Rather than mere psychological doctrine, Gestalt theory was conceived of as a general theory of form and organization deemed to lay a unified groundwork for several domains of scientific endeavor. Our aim in this article is to assess the legacy of this framework, and examine its relevance for present-day research in cognitive science. We thus survey the intellectual contexts within which Gestalt theory originated and evolved, and review some of its central features : a phenomenological approach to philosophy and science ; grounding in the field theory of physics and in the theory of dynamical systems in mathematics ; perception viewed as a general structure of cognition ; intrinsic interrelatedness of forms and values ; unitary approach to perceiving, acting, and expression. We hope this review will allow for a clarification of the status of Gestalt concepts in cognitive and language sciences, both with respect to fields of inquiry wherein they continue to exert substantial influence as well as in regard to fields from which all reference to Gestalt ideas has long since disappeared. We submit that the legacy of Gestalt theory will be most usefully reappraised with respect to its dynamic principles, although this reappraisal would entail a critical examination of the customary Gestalt concepts of time and psychogenesis, as well as a reconsideration of the status of motion and action in form (and/or meaning) constitution., La Gestalttheorie n’est pas seulement un corps de doctrine commun à plusieurs écoles de l’histoire de la psychologie : elle s’est voulue d’abord une théorie universelle des formes et des organisations, ayant vocation à valoir dans une pluralité de champs scientifiques dont elle aurait constitué un principe d’unification. Cet article dresse un inventaire de son héritage, et cherche à déterminer le rôle qu'elle pourrait jouer à nouveau dans les sciences cognitives. A cette fin, nous évoquerons d’abord le contexte dans lequel ce mouvement de pensée s’est développé, pour ressaisir ensuite quelques-unes de ses caractéristiques les plus originales : appartenance au grand mouvement philosophique et scientifique de la phénoménologie ; lien constitutif à la physique du champ et aux mathématiques des systèmes dynamiques ; identification de la perception à une structure générale de la cognition ; saisie solidaire des formes et des valeurs ; conception unitaire de la perception, de l’action et de l’expression. Une fois ce parcours effectué, on sera en mesure de comprendre les résonances, et les absences significatives de la Gestalt dans les sciences cognitives et les sciences du langage contemporaines. On verra ainsi que le sens le plus intéressant pour une reprise de l’héritage gestaltiste se trouve à partir d’un réexamen critique de son dynamicisme : donc en revenant à sa conception du temps, à ses problématiques génétiques, au rôle joué par le mouvement et par l’action dans la constitution (du sens) des formes., Rosenthal Victor, Visetti Yves-Marie. Sens et temps de la Gestalt. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°28, 1999/1. Présences de la Gestalt, sous la direction de R. Casati. pp. 147-228.

Visetti Yves-Marie. Fonctionnalismes 1996. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°21, 1995/2. Fonctionnalismes. pp. 282-311.

We support Shanker & King's (S&K's) proposal for a dynamic systems approach in ape language research, but question their vision of what it means to have language. Language plays an essential role in the making of the human mind. It underlies any kind of human interaction and codetermines perception and action. Moreover, what gives human thought the very characteristic architecture of textuality criterially requires a third party.

From Expert Systems to Knowledge Based Systems : In Search of a New Regulating Scheme. We describe here three kinds of constraints to which knowledge-based systems are submitted : constraints of cognitive modelling, of logical reconstruction, of communicability and interaction in a real situation. Priority conflicts between these constraints are specially analyzed. Simultaneously, the paper examines in a critical way the main paradigm of AI, that of classical symbol systems. We next give the broad lines of a "new" regulating scheme, at the epistemological level, for designing and using these systems, which are then presented as aids to modelling., L'article décrit trois sortes de contraintes auxquelles sont soumis les systèmes à base de connaissances : contraintes de la modélisation cognitive, de la reconstruction logique, de la communicabilité et de l'interaction en situation réelle. Les conflits de priorité qui en résultent sont tout particulièrement soulignés. Simultanément, on rappelle quelques-unes des critiques les plus couramment adressées au paradigme dominant de l'IA, celui des systèmes symboliques classiques. On donne ensuite les grandes lignes d'un "nouveau" schéma régulateur, au plan épistémologique, pour la conception et l'utilisation de ces systèmes, qui sont alors présentés comme des aides à la modélisation., Visetti Yves-Marie. Des systèmes experts aux systèmes à base de connaissances : à la recherche d'un nouveau schéma régulateur. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°12, 1991/2. Expertise et Sciences Cognitives. pp. 221-279.

In spite of its decrease in the modern context, the proverb remains part of a common sense which is not reduced to a background of language, but belongs to a whole of techniques of speech. Within the framework of a theory of the semantic forms, we propose a model of the figurale genericity of proverbs, deploying a variety of “motifs” to various stages of integration. We see in particular that a trans-discursive level emerges from koine semantic, where the dimensions of sensibility and doxa are brought together in common sense. The following points are specifically approached : anarchistic diversity of formular interpretations, fluctuation of the lexical values, rock of gnomic/deontic, logical and proverbial realism. One underlines the nonconsensual character of the community of meaning, the need for reconsidering the problem of modalities, and, at least, the scientific interest of a concept of “micro-genre” for the discursive approach of common sense.

This paper deals with the problem of connectionist representation of structures and processes, from the point of view of a possible schematization of certain linguistic theories. A first part defines the status of the models concerned. The second part states the problem of structure, and analyzes the technical means now available to answer it. A general approach to symboling processing on the basis of a syntax of attractors is then described. A third and last part offers some remarks on the scope of the connectionist paradigm in the linguistic field, and beyond that, in the understanding of symbolic systems., Cet article traite du problème de la représentation connexionniste des structures et des processus, dans la perspective d'une schématisation possible de certaines théories linguistiques. Une première partie définit le statut des modèles concernés. La seconde partie énonce le problème de la structure, et analyse les moyens techniques dont on dispose actuellement pour y répondre. Une approche générale du traitement des processus symboliques par le biais d'une syntaxe d'attracteurs est ensuite dégagée. Une troisième et dernière partie présente quelques remarques sur la portée du paradigme connexionniste dans le domaine linguistique, et au-delà dans la conception des systèmes symboliques., Visetti Yves-Marie. Modèles connexionnistes et représentations structurées. In: Intellectica. Revue de l'Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, n°9-10, 1990/1. Modèles connexionnistes, sous la direction de Daniel Memmi et Yves-Marie Visetti. pp. 167-212.