The Ontology of Finite Continuity: A Formalization of Structural Subjectivity

Summary

The paper argues that Western philosophy's focus on 'Being' should be replaced by a new question: what conditions allow a meaning-system to maintain structural continuity? It introduces the 'Ontology of Finite Continuity,' centered on a 'Threshold of Sufficiency'—a metric for a system's ability to withstand disruptions before changing state. This process follows homeorhesis, returning to a developmental path rather than equilibrium. An eight-layered Structural Theory of Subjectivity is proposed. The paper critiques Predictive Processing, Extended Mind, and related frameworks, concluding with a case study on digital identity crises from generative AI, supported by empirical research on identity formation.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Abstract Western ontology, from Parmenides to Heidegger, has been persistently fixated on the question of "Being" (Was ist das Seiende?), thereby neglecting the formal mechanisms governing the survival and collapse of meaning-systems. This paper argues for a fundamental reorientation: the foundational question of philosophy should shift from "What is Being?" to "What conditions make the structural continuity of a meaning-system possible?" This reorientation—termed the "Ontology of Finite Continuity"—is anchored in the concept of the Threshold of Sufficiency: an objective metric for measuring a system's capacity to withstand structural perturbations before undergoing phase transition. Unlike homeostatic models that return to a fixed equilibrium, finite continuity operates through homeorhesis—a system's return to its developmental trajectory rather than to a static point. To formalize this dynamics, I propose a Structural Theory of Subjectivity comprising eight simultaneous layers. The paper engages critically with contemporary frameworks including Predictive Processing, Extended Mind, Autopoiesis, Enactivism, systems theory, and plasticity. I demonstrate that hermeneutic friction emerges as the nonlinear interaction of three failure types across the eight layers. The paper concludes with a case study—the crisis of digital identity in the age of generative AI—supported by empirical research on identity formation in digital environments. Keywords: Ontology of Finite Continuity, Threshold of Sufficiency, Homeorhesis, Structural Subjectivity, Finite Hermeneutics of Failure, Hermeneutic Friction, Generative Artificial Intelligence.

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