Introduction……………………………………………………………………………3

I. The concept of consciousness………………………………………………………………..4

II. Forms of consciousness………………………………………………………..…….6

2.1. Forms of public consciousness………………………………………….7

2.2 Political consciousness….…………………………………………………..8

2.3 Legal consciousness…………………………………………………………….10

2.4 Moral consciousness……………………………………………………….12

2.5 Aesthetic consciousness………………….………………………………….15

2.6 Religious and atheistic consciousness…………………………………...17

2.7 Natural science consciousness…….……………………………………….…19

2.8 Economic consciousness…………………………………………………..19

2.9 Environmental consciousness……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Conclusion……………………………………………………………….……..24

List of used literature……………………….………………….25

INTRODUCTION

The activity of the subject - external and internal - is mediated and regulated by the mental reflection of reality. What in the objective world acts for the subject as motives, goals and conditions of his activity, must be somehow perceived, represented, understood, retained and reproduced in memory. The same applies to the processes of his activity and to himself - to his states, properties, features. Thus, the analysis of activity leads us to the traditional topics of psychology. However, now the logic of the research turns around: the problem of the manifestation of mental processes turns into the problem of their origin, their generation by those social connections that a person enters into in the objective world.

Mental reality, which is not available for direct measurement or study, is revealed to us in the form of sensations, memories and motives - this is the subjective world of consciousness. It took centuries to free ourselves from the identification of the psychic and the conscious. The variety of paths that led to their distinction in psychology, philosophy, physiology is surprising: it is enough to name the names of Leibniz, Fechner, Freud, Sechenov, Uznadze and Pavlov.

The decisive step was to establish the idea of ​​different levels of mental reflection. From a historical, genetic point of view, this meant the recognition of the existence of the preconscious psyche of animals and humans, as well as the emergence in humans of a qualitatively new form - consciousness. Thus, new questions arose: about the objective necessity to which the emerging consciousness responds, about what generates it, about its internal structure, the diversity of forms of consciousness. About the forms of consciousness and will be discussed in this work.

I. The concept of consciousness

Consciousness is the highest form of reflection of the real world, peculiar only to people and a function formed by the social environment, which consists in a generalized and purposeful reflection of reality in the memory of the subject, in the preliminary mental construction of actions and anticipation of their results, in reasonable regulation and self-control of human behavior.

The core of consciousness, the way of its existence is the subjective content of memory - knowledge. Consciousness belongs to the subject, the person, as well as his memory, and not to the surrounding world. But the content of consciousness, the content of human thoughts is the whole world displayed by memory, all its aspects, connections, laws. Therefore, consciousness can be characterized as a subjective image of the objective world.

Consciousness is not an addition to the human psyche, but the very subjective side of the psyche, awareness of the nearest sensually perceived environment and awareness of a limited connection with other persons and things that are outside the person who is beginning to become aware of himself, and at the same time awareness of nature.

Criteria for Conscious Behavior

Man, unlike animals, knows and realizes himself, he is able to improve. His consciousness is inherent in such aspects as self-consciousness, introspection, self-control. Their formation occurs when a person separates himself from the environment. Self-consciousness is the most important difference between the human psyche and the psyche of the most developed animals.

Consciousness is not just a mental state, but the highest human form of reflection of reality. Human consciousness is structurally organized and is an integral system consisting of various elements that are in regular relations with each other. In the structure of consciousness, it is important to single out the awareness of objects and experience, i.e. relation to the content of what is reflected.

The development of consciousness is possible only when it is replenished with new knowledge about the surrounding world and about the person himself. Cognition, awareness of things has different levels, the depth of penetration into the object and the degree of clarity of understanding.

The brain of a modern person was formed as a result of a long evolution and is a complex organ. The level of consciousness depends on the degree of organization of the brain and this is confirmed by the fact that the consciousness of a child is formed with the development of his brain, and when the brain of a very old man becomes decrepit, the functions of consciousness also fade.

The connection of consciousness with the processes occurring in the brain

Consciousness is always associated with these processes occurring in the brain and does not exist apart from them.

Consciousness is the highest form of reflection of the world in the subject and is associated with articulate speech, logical generalizations, abstract concepts and social environment, which is inherent only to man.

The core of consciousness, the way of its existence is the memory of the subject.

Work develops consciousness.

Speech (language) forms consciousness.

Consciousness is a function of memory.

Consciousness is multicomponent, but constitutes a single whole.

Consciousness is active and has the ability to influence the surrounding reality.

Consequently, for the features of the highest form of life, consciousness, we must thank the socio-historical experience of generations, work, language and knowledge.

II. Forms of consciousness.

Two forms of consciousness are described: personal and public. Personal consciousness is defined as Up-perception - awareness of the surrounding world and the subjective Self. Perception is realized with the help of objective biological and physical laws. The transformation of perception into Up-perception, that is, the transformation of objective processes into subjective sensations, cannot be described and is a black box. One of the results of the activity of consciousness is the emergence of ideas and views. Awareness of these ideas and views by a population of people forms the public consciousness. The development of social consciousness develops ideas and attitudes, which in turn influence personal consciousness.

It is well known that before any problem can be analyzed, it must first be defined. But the problem of consciousness has no definition, or, conversely, there are too many of them. Therefore, I will try to describe the forms and characteristics of consciousness in order to discuss them further.

Consciousness can be divided into two forms: The first form is the so-called personal, individual or personal consciousness of a person, his subjective sensations and intellect. The second form, this is what philosophy is concerned with, is the so-called public or social consciousness.

Social consciousness can be divided into: scientific consciousness, poetic consciousness, religious consciousness, etc. etc. Culture also belongs to this form of consciousness.

Public consciousness and any of its forms is a set of certain ideas and views that unite a certain population of people. But ideas and views are refracted in the consciousness (intellect) of each individual in a subjective way.

Social consciousness, refracted in individual consciousness, is the form of consciousness that is peculiar only to people. Only people are looking for God and the meaning of life. Only people have culture and creativity: they paint pictures, poems, seek the truth, doing science.

2.1. Forms of public consciousness

Forms of public consciousness are various forms of reflection in the minds of people of the objective world and social being, on the basis of which they arise in the process of practical activity, public consciousness exists and manifests itself in the forms of political ideology, legal consciousness, morality, religion, science, artistic views, art, philosophy . Unlike. direct reflection of reality in everyday consciousness, the forms of consciousness act as a more or less systematized consciousness, mediated by a theoretical or visual-figurative reflection of reality. Forms of social consciousness differ from each other by the object and the form of reflection, by social functions and the originality of the laws of development. The variety of F. o. with. is determined by the richness and diversity of the most objective world of nature and society. Various forms of social consciousness reflected various areas and aspects of reality (for example, political ideas, reflect the relationship between classes, nations, states and serve as the basis for political programs implemented in the actions of classes and social groups; in science, specific laws, natures and societies are known ; religion fantastically reflects the dependence of people on the dominant, over them, natural, and then social forces.Having a peculiar object of reflection, each form of consciousness is characterized by a special form of reflection (for example, a scientific concept, a moral norm, an artistic image, a religious dogma ") The richness and complexity of the objective world create only the possibility of the emergence of various forms of social consciousness. This possibility is realized on the basis of a specific social need. Thus, science arises only when the simple accumulation of experience and empirical knowledge becomes insufficient for a developed social production; political, etc. Avovye views and ideas arise together with the advent of classes and the state gave justification and consolidation of relations of domination and subordination, etc. In each socio-economic formation, all forms of consciousness are interconnected and, on the whole, constitute the spiritual life of a particular society. The peculiarity of the social need that generates certain F. o. s., determines the specific historical role they play in the life and development of society. With the victory of communism, the need for political and legal ideology will disappear, and they will die out. On the other hand, such forms of social consciousness as morality, science, philosophy will flourish, which will not only serve the diverse social needs, but, forming the spiritual image of the individual, will be a condition for its comprehensive development, active creative activity.

Public consciousness exists and manifests itself in the forms of political consciousness, legal consciousness, moral consciousness, religious and atheistic consciousness, aesthetic consciousness, natural science consciousness. The existence of various forms of social consciousness is determined by the richness and diversity of the very objective world of nature and society. Having a peculiar object of reflection, each form of consciousness has its own special form of reflection: a scientific concept, a moral norm, a religious dogma, an artistic image. But the richness and complexity of the objective world only create the possibility of the emergence of various forms of social consciousness. This possibility is realized on the basis of a specific social need. Consciousness. concept consciousness He plays a dual role, speaking ...

Consciousness as a philosophical problem (1)

Abstract >> Philosophy

... Consciousness as a philosophical problem 2. Consciousness – the form reflections, the spiritual side of being 3. Basic properties and structure consciousness 4. Consciousness... - interpretation interpretation - deals with " concepts about concepts", is leading for philosophers based on ...

public consciousness- a set of ideas, theories, views, ideas, feelings, beliefs, emotions of people, moods, which reflect nature, the material life of society and the entire system of social relations. Social consciousness is a part of social being that arose simultaneously and in unity with it, a necessary condition for its emergence. But at the same time, social being and social consciousness are different and relatively independent.

Feature of public consciousness- it in its influence on being can evaluate it, reveal its meaning, predict, transform it through the practical activity of people. The social consciousness of the epoch, which reflects being and actively contributes to its transformation, is a historically necessary and actually existing element of any social structure.

Reflecting social being, social consciousness is able to actively influence it through the transformative activity of people. The relative independence of social consciousness is manifested in the fact that it has continuity, but can be ahead of social being or lag behind it.

public consciousness- a special social phenomenon, distinguished by its own characteristics, peculiar only to it, specific patterns of functioning and development. Public consciousness, reflecting the complexity and inconsistency of social life, is also contradictory and has a complex structure.

The class structure arose with the advent of class societies.

In multinational states - the national consciousness of peoples.

According to the level, depth and degree of reflection of social life in the public consciousness, ordinary and theoretical consciousness is distinguished.

From the point of view of its material carriers: social, group and individual consciousness

In historical and genetic terms - public consciousness as a whole or its features in various socio-economic formations.

Forms of public consciousness- various forms of reflection in the minds of people of the objective world and social being, on the basis of which they arise in the process of practical activity. Forms of public consciousness:

Political consciousness- a system of knowledge and assessments, thanks to which there is a consciousness of the field of politics by subjects acting in the form of individuals, groups, classes, communities; a necessary element of the functioning and development of the political system as a whole. Functions: prognostic, evaluative, regulatory, cognitive. The levels are ordinary - practical and ideological - theoretical.

Legal consciousness- a system of knowledge and assessments through which public subjects (individuals, groups, classes) are aware of the sphere of law. Functions: regulatory, evaluative, cognitive. Structure: legal ideology and legal psychology, subjectively - individual, group and mass (for example, class) legal consciousness, according to the level of reflection of reality - ordinary, professional and scientific legal consciousness.

moral consciousness contains historically changing moral relations, which are the subjective side of morality. Morality (morality) is a system of views and ideas, norms and assessments regarding the regulation of the behavior of individuals, the coordination of the actions of individuals with the interests of other people or a certain community, ways of educating people, creating and strengthening certain moral qualities and relationships. It is possible to single out professional, domestic, family morality. Moral consciousness has a complex structure in which interrelated elements can be distinguished: moral ideal, moral need, moral motivation and self-esteem, norms, value orientation, views, feelings. In moral consciousness, two main principles should be distinguished: emotional and intellectual.

Aesthetic consciousness- a holistic, emotionally rich reflection of reality, the objective basis of which is natural and social reality and socio-historical practice. The structure of aesthetic consciousness includes: aesthetic views, ideals, assessments, tastes, aesthetic feelings, needs, aesthetic theory. In the formation of aesthetic consciousness, art is called upon to play an important role - a specific aesthetic form of social consciousness and the development of reality, its artistic knowledge and evaluation, a special form of human creative activity.

Religious and atheistic consciousness. Religious consciousness, along with religious activities, religious relations and organizations, is an element in the structure of religion. Religion is a worldview and worldview and corresponding behavior, determined by belief in the existence of God, this is a feeling of dependence in relation to him, which gives hope and support in life. Religious consciousness is primarily characterized by faith, emotionality, symbolism, sensual visibility, the combination of real content with illusions, dialogue, knowledge of religious vocabulary, imagination, fantasy. There are two levels in religious consciousness: everyday and theoretical (conceptual).

natural science consciousness is a complex social phenomenon. Science is a historically established form of human activity aimed at understanding and transforming objective reality, such an area of ​​​​spiritual production that results in purposefully selected and systematized facts, logically verified hypotheses, generalizing theories, fundamental and particular laws, as well as research methods. The functions of science are explanatory, practical, cognitive, etc.

economic consciousness- this is a form of public consciousness, which reflects economic knowledge, theories, assessments of socio-economic activities and social needs. In its structure, one should single out the theoretical, scientific consciousness and the empirical, everyday understanding of the economy.

Environmental consciousness- this is a value form of social consciousness, which reflects the relationship of man with nature and the assessment of social activity. Ecological consciousness presupposes the selection by a person of himself as the bearer of an active and creative attitude towards nature.

Spiritual life of society.

Spiritual life- this is a sphere in the life of society in which spiritual values, needs and ideas are created and mastered, their consumption is carried out and which correlates with the economic, social and political spheres. The spiritual life of society has a cumulative product - it is primarily social consciousness.

Society consists of individuals, each person has his own individual consciousness, and on this basis, social consciousness is formed. Public and individual consciousness are related to each other as general and individual. The carrier of social consciousness is humanity as a whole and social communities - classes, nations, etc. public consciousness is a set of ideas, theories, views, social feelings, habits and customs of people, conditioned by objective reality and influencing it. Being a product of historical development, it plays the role of the cultural foundations of the individual. Public consciousness exists as an engine of history and culture, when its content is mastered by individual consciousness and activity.

Public consciousness has two levels - everyday and theoretical. Ordinary consciousness arises in the process of everyday practice of people, spontaneously, it is an empirical reflection of the external side of reality, a reflection at the level of the phenomenon. These are knowledge, values, ideas and norms that are aimed at obtaining direct benefits. It is not systematized, contains both truth and superstition, prejudice. Its bearer is the people. theoretical consciousness is a reflection of the essential connections and patterns of reality, it is systematized, aimed at obtaining the truth, stored and transmitted in scientific texts, formulas, drawings. Theoretical consciousness is science and ideology. Its carriers are people who know the theory.

Ordinary consciousness contains social psychology. These are habits, traditions, moods, aspirations, convictions, beliefs that express the interests of classes and other social communities. Any event in society finds a response in social psychology, and since the interests of social communities are different, in society, as a rule, there is no single social psychology. In addition to the social class feature, social psychology has a national character, each nationality, nation has some of its own psychological features.

The theoretical mind contains ideology. These are ideas, concepts, ideological stereotypes, values ​​that express the interests of classes and other social communities. Through ideology, social communities are aware of their existence, their fundamental interests, their tasks and the means of their solution. Ideology is created by politicians, political parties, the state, etc. Differences in the interests of social communities and leads to differences in ideology. Different ideologies clash, an ideological struggle takes place, which intensifies during deep changes in a given society.

The structure of social consciousness is also expressed in its forms. Traditional, classical forms of social consciousness are political, legal, moral, aesthetic, religious, philosophical and scientific. There are certain criteria for different forms of consciousness:

on the subject of reflection. For example, political consciousness reflects politics, legal - law;

in the form of reflection. For example, science reflects reality in categories and laws, and aesthetic consciousness - in artistic images;

according to the functions they perform. For example, moral consciousness regulates relations between people, religious consciousness gives a person the meaning of life.

As a result of evolution, the nervous system and, first of all, the brain have reached a level of development that allows a person to work. Under the influence of labor, which is of a collective nature, mental processes began to develop in a person, which led to the emergence of consciousness - the highest level of mental development inherent only in man. Thus, the emergence of consciousness in a person has both biological and cultural-social conditions, i.e., the emergence of consciousness outside of society is impossible. The main conditions for the emergence and development of consciousness are the appropriate level of biological development, the presence of a social environment and collective work.

Consciousness- the highest level of mental reflection and regulation, inherent only to man as a socio-historical being. From a practical point of view, consciousness can be viewed as a continuously changing set of sensory and mental images that directly appear before the subject in his inner world and anticipate his practical activity. Consciousness is studied by many sciences - philosophy, anthropology, neurophysiology, sociology, psychology, physiology, etc. All religions pay close attention to consciousness.

From a psychological point of view, we can talk about several established properties of consciousness:

1) the consciousness of the individual is characterized by activity, which is primarily due to the specifics of the internal state of the subject at the time of action, as well as the presence of a goal and sustainable activity to achieve it;

2 consciousness is inherent in intentionality, i.e., focus on any object. Consciousness is always the consciousness of something;

3) the ability of human consciousness to reflection, self-observation, i.e. the possibility of awareness of consciousness itself;

4) consciousness has a motivational-value character. It is always motivated, pursues some goals, which is due to the needs of the body and personality.

One of the functions of consciousness is to form the goals of activity, in the preliminary mental construction of actions and the prediction of their results, which ensures reasonable regulation of human behavior and activity. Consciousness developed in man only in social contacts. In phylogeny, human consciousness developed and became possible only under conditions of active influence on nature, in conditions of labor activity. In addition, both in phylogenesis and ontogenesis, speech becomes the subjective carrier of human consciousness, which first acts as a means of communication, and then becomes a means of thinking.

In psychology, there are several types of human consciousness:

worldly- is formed first among other types of consciousness, arises when interacting with things, is fixed in the language in the form of the first concepts;

design- covers the range of tasks related to the design and implementation of specific goals of the activity;

scientific- relies on scientific concepts, concepts, models, explores not individual properties of objects, but their relationships;

aesthetic- associated with the process of emotional perception of the world around;

ethical- determines the moral attitudes of a person (from extreme adherence to principles to immorality). Unlike other types of consciousness, the degree of development of the ethical (moral) consciousness of a person is difficult to assess by himself.

Along with the development of civilization, human consciousness continues to develop, and at the present historical moment this development is accelerating, which is caused by the accelerated pace of scientific, technological and cultural progress.

2. Self-awareness. The structure of consciousness. "I-concept"

A necessary and first stage in the formation of consciousness is self-consciousness, i.e., awareness of oneself, one’s “self”. Self-awareness manifests itself as self-knowledge, self-esteem, self-control and self-acceptance.

self-knowledge- this is a person's focus on knowing their physical (bodily), mental, spiritual capabilities and qualities, their place among other people. Self-knowledge is carried out through an analysis of the results of one's own activity, one's behavior and relationships with other people, through awareness of other people's attitude towards oneself and through self-observation of one's states, experiences, thoughts, and actions.

Self-knowledge is the basis for self-esteem, which includes knowing the scale of values ​​by which a person can evaluate himself. Self-esteem can be adequate (real) and inadequate - either too high or too low. The American psychologist W. James owns the formula of human self-esteem:

L. N. Tolstoy expressed the idea that a person is a fraction that tends to unity, but never reaches it. The numerator of this fraction is what the person is, and the denominator is what he thinks of himself.

Self-knowledge is also the basis for constant self-control, which is manifested in the awareness and evaluation of a person's own actions.

The result of man's self-knowledge is his self-acceptance- the development of a system of ideas about oneself, or the "image of the Self", which determines the attitude of the individual to himself, is the basis for building relationships with other people.

The ability to reflect determines the ability of a person to observe himself, his state, which determines the formation of his individual "I-concepts", which is a set of ideas of a person about himself. A person evaluates all information about the world around on the basis of ideas about himself and forms behavior based on the system of his values, ideals and motivational attitudes. "I-concept" of a person is strictly individual, since different people evaluate events in different ways, the same objects of the real world, and the assessments of some people are quite objective, that is, they correspond to reality, while the assessments of others, on the contrary, are extremely subjective.

In psychology, there are two forms of "I-concept" - real and ideal. The main thing in the real is such an idea of ​​the person about himself, which corresponds to reality, and in the ideal - the idea of ​​the person about himself in accordance with desires, that is, such a person wants to be. Most people have different real and ideal "I-concepts". These discrepancies can lead to both positive and negative consequences: on the one hand, this can lead to an intrapersonal conflict, and on the other hand, it can become a source of self-improvement of the individual.

3. The relationship between consciousness and the unconscious

All mental phenomena can be divided into two groups. The first are realized by the person himself. The manifestation of the second is not reflected in the human mind - they are called unconscious processes, or unconscious. Unconscious- this is a set of mental processes, acts, states caused by such influences, in the influence of which a person is not aware of his behavior. There is no self-control or self-esteem here.

Elements of the unconscious are represented to varying degrees in many mental processes, for example, an unconscious sense of balance, unconscious images of perception associated with the recognition of what was previously seen. The unconscious in a person's personality is those aspects of the personality that a person is not aware of in himself, but which are inherent in him and manifest themselves involuntarily.

A. G. Asmolov proposed to combine the various manifestations of the unconscious in human behavior into the following groups:

¦ supra-individual supraconscious phenomena- these are patterns of behavior typical for a given group (community) learned by the subject, the influence of which is not realized by the person himself. These patterns, assimilated through imitation, determine the socially typical features of human behavior;

¦ unconscious motives of behavior- being forced out of the consciousness of the individual due to a conflict with the social demands of society, hidden drives form hidden complexes that affect the individual and manifest themselves in indirect symbolic forms (dreams, slips of the tongue, slips of the tongue, etc.). Such unconscious motives make it possible to reveal the method of psychoanalysis by Z. Freud;

¦ unconscious reserves of the senses- the impact on behavior of such stimuli that a person cannot be aware of; such phenomena were described by I. M. Sechenov as a “sixth sense”;

¦ unconscious regulators of the ways of performing activities(operational attitudes and stereotypes) - arise in the process of solving various problems (perceptual, mnemonic, motor, mental) and are predetermined by past experience of behavior in similar situations.

The psyche as a whole, consciousness and the unconscious in particular, provide adaptability, adaptation of a person to the outside world. Consciousness controls the most complex forms of behavior that require constant attention and conscious control. But many behavioral acts are performed by a person at an unconscious level. Consciousness and the unconscious are qualitatively different levels of orientation in reality, each of which contributes to the regulation of the subject's activity.

Consciousness is a function of the brain. It represents the highest level of mental reflection and self-regulation, inherent only to man. Consciousness acts as a continuously changing set of mental and sensory images that appear before the subject (actual and potential), representing and anticipating his activity. Consciousness and the human psyche are inseparable.

Consciousness - this is the highest function of the brain, peculiar only to people and associated with speech, which consists in the reasonable regulation and self-control of human behavior, in a purposeful and generalized reflection of reality, in a preliminary mental construction of actions and foreseeing their results. Consciousness instantly links between what a person heard, saw, and what he felt, thought, experienced.

Core of consciousness:

- Feel;

- perception;

- representation;

- concepts;

- thinking.

The components of the structure of consciousness are feelings and emotions.

Consciousness acts as a result of cognition, and the way of its existence is knowledge. Knowledge is a practice-tested result of cognition of reality, its correct reflection in human thinking.

Consciousness- moral and psychological characteristics of the actions of the individual, which is based on the assessment and consciousness of oneself, one's capabilities, intentions and goals.

Self-awareness - it is a person's awareness of his actions, thoughts, feelings, interests, motives of behavior, his position in society.

According to Kant, self-consciousness is consistent with the awareness of the external world: "the consciousness of my own existing being is at the same time the direct awareness of the being of other things that are outside me."

Man is aware of himself

– through the material and spiritual culture he created;

- sensations of one's own body, movements, actions;

- communication and interaction with other people. The formation of self-awareness is:

- in direct communication of people with each other;

- in their evaluation relationships;

- in formulating the requirements of society for an individual;

- in understanding the very rules of relationships. A person realizes himself not only through other people, but also through the spiritual and material culture he created.

Knowing himself, a person never remains the same as he was before. self-awareness appeared in response to the call of social conditions of life, which from the very beginning required from each person the ability to evaluate their words, deeds and thoughts from the standpoint of certain social norms. Life, with its strict lessons, taught a person to exercise self-regulation and self-control. By regulating his actions and foreseeing their results, the self-conscious person takes full responsibility for them.

Self-consciousness is closely connected with the phenomenon of reflection, as if expanding its semantic field.

Reflection- a person's reflection on himself, when he peers into the innermost depths of his inner spiritual life.

During reflection, a person realizes:

- what is happening in his soul;

– what is happening in his inner spiritual world. Reflection belongs to the nature of man, his social fullness through the mechanisms of communication: reflection cannot be born in the depths of an isolated personality, outside of communication, outside of familiarization with the treasures of civilization and culture of mankind.

The levels of reflection can be very diverse - from ordinary self-awareness to deep reflection on the meaning of one's life, its moral content. Comprehending his own spiritual processes, a person often critically evaluates the negative aspects of his spiritual world.

Consciousness and its genesis.

Consciousness is not a special entity represented separately from matter, but ideally connected with it. Consciousness is a property of the human brain - that is, a material substance with specific properties.

Consciousness is the essential characteristic of a person (what makes him a person) = the ability to comprehend (comprehension, experience, design) external reality and one's internal experience.

Consciousness is elusive to external observation. When objectified in language, behavior-activity, the brain, the unique-personal is leveled. The authors, however, believe that the philosophical reconstruction of consciousness should reflect all of its philosophical aspects.

- substantial concept (Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Spinoza, Hegel): the mind is the substance (basis and essence) of the world, the human mind is a manifestation of the World Mind;

- functional model (Hobbes, Locke, Buechner, Lenin, Rorty): consciousness is a function of the nervous system and brain, feelings are the source of consciousness;

- existential-phenomenological concept (Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre): consciousness is freely constructed by the individual I from external and internal flows of thoughts, feelings, associations;

- sociocultural paradigm (Marxism, symbolic interactionism, structuralism): consciousness is a product of social relations, social interactions, language.

Consciousness is only a function of the human brain. Animals, even the most advanced of them - an elephant, a dolphin, a monkey, a dog, etc., act instinctively, although it may seem that they are conscious. However, no, their actions are due to the centuries-old nature of behavior, unconditioned (natural) reflexes (lat.). A person reflexively (lat. reflexio), reflecting the surrounding reality in his mind, at the same time gives it an actual and potential assessment and carries out activities on the basis of this.

Consciousness is a multi-level system of natural, personal and socio-cultural, therefore its genesis= natural evolution + formation of culture and society + individual development.

The natural basis of consciousness reflection property, in wildlife developing as follows: irritability (undifferentiated reaction) - sensitivity (differentiated reaction) - psyche (complex reaction and flexible adaptation).

The difference between human consciousness from the psyche of animals: abstract-logical thinking, goal-setting, self-awareness, language. These differences are the product of socio- and cultural genesis.

The primary act of consciousness as human thinking is operating with ideal projections of objects. Stages of development of thinking: visual-effective - figurative-symbolic - logical-conceptual.

Ontogenesis (personal development) of consciousness is a repetition of phylogenesis (the history of the development of the genus). Its stages: sensorimotor (immediate reaction) - pre-operational (preliminary thinking of words-symbols) - operational (practical implementation - a real combination of elements of consciousness and language

An essential role in the origin of human consciousness is assigned to labor. About 7 million years ago, humanoid creatures descended from the trees, where they mainly lived, to the ground, and tried to stand on their hind limbs. The attempt was successful, and it was a great event in the evolution of mankind, since the future homo sapiens freed the forelimbs of the animal to carry out various targeted actions, and not just moving in space, searching for food or defensive reactions. He gradually began to work. The objective use of the forelimbs - hands, which in the primate represented a single whole with the emerging consciousness, expanded.

The brain, as an organ of consciousness, developed simultaneously with the development of the hands, as an organ that performs various functions. It was the hands of the primate, in direct contact with various objects, that gave impulses to other sense organs: the eye developed, sensations were enriched.

The active hands, as it were, "taught" the head to think, before they themselves became instruments for fulfilling the will of the head, that is, consciousness. The logic of practical actions was fixed in the head and turned into the logic of thinking: a person learned to think. Before proceeding to the case, he could mentally imagine the result. Marx noted this well in Capital: “The spider performs operations reminiscent of the operations of a weaver, and the bee, by building its wax cells, puts some human architects to shame. But even the worst architect differs from the best bee from the very beginning in that, before building a cell from wax, he has already built it in his head. At the end of the labor process, a result is obtained, which already at the beginning of this process was in the mind of man. "

The formation of a person and his consciousness was facilitated by everyday and economic needs, in particular, hunting as a developmental activity, the performance of various operations, from the simplest to handicraft.

Consciousness is a product of the brain of a reasonable person. It is not closed in itself, it develops, changes in the process of social development. The reasons for what sensations, thoughts and feelings arise in a person are not in the brain as a material substratum of the intellect. The human brain becomes an organ of consciousness only when its subject acts under certain conditions that fill the brain with knowledge and experience of socio-historical practice and make it function in a certain socially significant direction.