Swinburne on thought and consciousness

Abstract

Some years ago H. H. Price put forward a dispositional account of thinking, suggesting that we are never directly aware of our thoughts as such, and claiming that we are, at most, conscious of inner word images (auditory images) that express the thoughts we have. In a recent article in this journal, R. Swinburne has taken issue with Price's view, and offered an alternative account of the nature of thought. Although there is much in Swinburne's paper that is interesting and with which I find myself in agreement, I would like to argue here that he is mistaken in his central contention; and in arguing this I would like to defend a modified version of Price's theory. [opening paragraph]