The Hard Answer: What Is Consciousness?

An extraction from the book, Adeology

From the section: Unapologetics

        What is Consciousness? Consciousness is nothing more than the most extraordinary thing—ever. Well, next to existence, anyway. But, without consciousness, one would not know that existence exists. So, again, what is consciousness? Daniel Dennett [the hard question] loves to remind us that it isn’t what we think it is. David Chalmers [the hard problem] says that it does and doesn’t exist. But, the hard answer to what is consciousness, is that consciousness is an evolutionary survival adaptation—and, when it comes down to it, consciousness is merely that which is experienced between birth and death.