Time and Free Will: An Essay on the Immediate Data of Consciousness

"Time and Free Will: An Essay on the Immediate Data of Consciousness" by Henri Bergson is a philosophical work written during the late 19th century. In this essay, Bergson explores the nature of time, consciousness, and the concept of free will, arguing against traditional deterministic views by emphasizing the importance of real duration and qualitative experiences. The opening of the text sets the stage for Bergson's exploration of the intensity of conscious states, questioning how we perceive and measure qualities such as emotions and sensations. He challenges the notion that these qualitative experiences can be quantified like physical magnitudes, advocating instead for an understanding of consciousness as a complex, interconnected flow of experiences. This critical examination of sensory intensity is just the beginning of Bergson's deeper inquiry into the relationship between consciousness and free will, preparing the reader for a philosophical journey that blends empirical observations with intuitive understanding. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Henri-Louis Bergson was a French philosopher who was influential in the traditions of analytic philosophy and continental philosophy, especially during the first half of the 20th century until the Second World War, but also after 1966 when Gilles Deleuze published Le Bergsonisme. Bergson is known for his arguments that processes of immediate experience and intuition are more significant than abstract rationalism and science for understanding reality.