norms and normativity
an organism devotes energy to "correcting" deviations from a range of physiological states within which "comfort" is defined. This response occurs spontaneously or "mechanically". In an outrageously complex organism like a humanbeast, physiological thresholds are coordinated by a system of communications that is multiply elaborated into a self with interests extending far beyond the organism's physical boundaries. The elaboration is achieved largely through internal modeling of the body and its physical and social environments, through symbolic thought, and through metaphorical understanding. Normativity, the tendency to correct deviations from the comfort range in all dimensions, is present at every level. A mind contemplating normativity is like a fish contemplating water.
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