The Surrealists used techniques such as automatic drawing, exquisite corpse, collage, frottage, and decalcomania to bypass conscious thought and artistic skill, aiming to access the unconscious mind as defined by Freud. Their practice of 'objective chance' reflected a belief that unconscious truths could only be reached indirectly. This chapter interprets these methods through theories of distributed cognition, enactivism, embodiment, and the extended mind, linking the Surrealists' search for universal truth to the philosophical question of where the mind ends and the world begins.
Distributed cognition can be understood as a kind of qualia—the felt experience of extending beyond one's own skin. Drawing on Daniel Dennett's distinction between scientific and manifest ontology, fictional narratives offer access to this manifest truth of 'porous qualia.' Analyzing works by Arnold Bennett, James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf, the chapter defines three modes of porous qualia: projecting, responding, and circulating, ranging from minimal to innovative forms. Against the backdrop of unified nationalisms, Woolf's use of rhythmic repetitive touch models a new communal feeling that combines connectedness with respect for individual difference.