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Time in Action

In this chapter I explore the micro-structures of action and the perceptual aspects that accompany action, in order to show how at a very basic level they self-organize into processes that support the intentional lives of agents. The intrinsic temporality of action is shaped in part by the fact that action is dynamically embodied and situated. Initial and boundary conditions are determined not simply by anatomical and neural parameters but also by the circumstances that individuate actions, including agent-related aspects (like intention, motivation, skill, knowledge—but also things like fatigue, physical condition, processes associated with age, emotional experience, starting posture, etc.) and world-related aspects (like facts about objects and physical arrangements, and people in the action environment). This intrinsic temporality is reflected at the macro level (on the narrative scale) where actions are always situated in a world of meaning, and intentions are always future-oriented towards the possibilities of transcending present circumstances.