This is a continuation of part II
In his book, Dennett decides to rely only on what can be observed and recorded by an external observer of the conscious being. He does not wish to rely on introspection at all. Why this? Because he thinks (rightly to my opinion) that we are much less knowledgeable about our inner world than we think.
When asked, people will tend to think that their visual field is uniformly detailed and focused from the centre out to the boundaries. The following experience demonstrates otherwise:
Take a deck of playing cards and remove one card in such a way that you do not know what is on the card. Now close your eyes, turn the card so that it faces in your direction and place the card at the left periphery of your visual field. Now, when you will open your eyes, keep your focus on a point situated straight in front of you. Now open your eyes and, without stopping to stare at said point, try to guess which card it is. The amazing thing is that you cannot even say if it is a red or a black card! However, you can very well see that there is something there and if you move your hand a bit, you are totally seeing said something moving too. Now start slowly moving the card toward the centre of your visual field while keeping you gaze fixed right in front of you. You will be amazed to notice that the card really need to be damned close to the centre of your visual field before that you can even tell its colour or if it is a queen or king!
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