Delboeufian Reflections on Agency, Consciousness, and Evolution

The work of Joseph Delb??uf (1831‐1896), a philosopher, psychologist, and mathematician, provides fresh insights on the relationship between agency, consciousness, and evolution. Without agency, Delb??uf argued, the distinction between the self and the external world would be impossible, the function of feelings such as pain and pleasure would be incomprehensible, and consciousness would not have evolved. Delb??uf also posited a psychological stage of evolution, preceding that of natural selection, whereby sentient organisms influence the selection of their own traits through the decisions they make during their reproductive lives. In relating these ideas and others, I show how Delb??uf’s work is relevant to current scholarship on the nature and evolution of consciousness.