Abstract

In this article I discuss the question whether cognitive unconscious is actually "mental". In the first section I introduce the notion of cognitive unconscious, focusing in particular on the differences between the cognitive unconscious and the Freudian one. The second section contains a critical analysis of Searle's argument (the so-called "connection principle") against the mental nature of cognitive unconscious. In the last section I explain how and to what extent cognitive unconscious can be regarded as a genuine piece of the mind.