Abstract

The author proposes that Tomasello's kind of asking and answering questions is a kind of quasi transcendental naturalism . It is transcendental in the sense that he asks about the structural and functional conditions that enable emprical phenomena. But he changes the direction of this question to its answer – namely to different time frames in nature and to empirical methods. Furthermore, the article proposes precisions of his conception regarding the intelligence of chimpanzees; the problem of imitation ; the difference between biological environment, socio-cultural environment and frames of worlds for persons. Finally, the article limits his explanatory claims with regard to the distinctions community versus society, concrete roles versus generalized roles of others, and to the personal pronouns of you , we, you and they differing from the usual dualism of first person percpective versus third person perspective in singular