The Homunculus Fallacy and the Receiver Fallacy: Misguided Attempts to Explain Consciousness

In this essay, I will debunk two popular theories of consciousness — the Homunculus Theory and the Radio Receiver (or Drone) Theory.

The Homunculus Problem: A False Explanation

The homunculus problem arises when people attempt to explain consciousness by imagining a little observer inside the brain — a miniature self that watches, interprets, and experiences our perceptions. Philosopher Daniel Dennett has criticized this idea as not only false but deeply flawed.

One major issue with this explanation is infinite regress. If a tiny “self” inside the brain is watching an internal representation of the world, then how does that homunculus experience perception? Does it have another homunculus inside its brain watching its perceptions? This leads to an endless loop, failing to explain how subjective experience actually arises.

Another problem is that it assumes a unified self where none exists. Modern neuroscience has shown that consciousness is not the product of a single, central observer. Instead, it emerges from distributed neural processes interacting across different brain regions. By assuming a homunculus, the theory ignores how cognition actually works and instead invents an…