The Stream of Consciousness: XIX. James's Concept of Appropriation

Abstract

I continue to pursue an understanding of the state-appropriative acts, which are introduced in the immediately preceding article of the present series. I inquire here into James's concept of appropriation, which refers to one of the main functions that the state-appropriative acts are proposed uniquely to perform. These states of consciousness turn around, so to speak, upon the stream itself, and often appropriate, claim, identify with, the states of consciousness that they mentally apprehend firsthand in a warm and intimate way. The state- appropriative acts have, perforce, a partially outward direction to the body. For James holds a state-appropriative act lacks awareness of itself beyond, at most, acquaintance with itself and, therefore, it cannot self-appropriate. Also discussed are further dimensions of state-appropriation, including its occurrence by means of remembrance, as well as the indirect, inherited kind of appropriation—from the last state-appropriative act in the same stream—that James invokes to explain the sense of personal identity without positing an ego.