It's important to note that Taylor, after suggesting that knowledge and the imagination are mutually determining and of equal importance, defines the imagination as a controlled recombination of memories: a recombination to distinguish simple remembering from imagining; and controlled to distinguish dreams from imaginings (we typically think of dreams as uncontrolled recombinations of memories). What Taylor fails to clarify is the distinct nature of creativity (which she occasionally treats as synonymous with imagining). In my dialogue, I suggest that creativity is a special case of imagining; a concrete application to the world of the more free-wheeling capacity to imagine (for example, I become creative only when I produce or create a story from my imagination). Further, I suggest that improvisation is a special kind of creativity -- creativity in the moment, or relatively spontaneous acts of creativity under conditions of uncertainty. How might these notions (creativity, imagination, and improvisation) relate to the last term of our discussion, knowledge? (We can think of knowledge as consisting of true beliefs for which we have evidence.) Other terms to consider include the understanding, conscious awareness, wisdom, and experience. What questions/comments do you have about these readings?
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