Stentor

The stentor has no decisions to make, no personal dilemmas, and so has no need of a subconscious. This stems from its basic design, which keeps it in constant, unstoppable motion. With no time to think, there is nothing to think about. The stentor does not know whether it creates a current of its own or is simply moved by that current. With or without this knowledge, the same amount of plankton gets channeled into its gullet.

As humans, all of our movements are determined in our subconscious. We are all so physically repulsive, special psychic forces are necessary for us to couple. A thing as simple as the exchange of saliva would be unlikely without these forces; the idea that we would tolerate, let alone crave a more sustained physical intimacy would be unthinkable. The main force which allows us to overcome this repulsiveness is the libido. As has already been determined, the libido's movements are roughly analogous to that of the amoeba. I wish to postulate another psychic force whose movements are roughly analogous to those of the stentor. I call this force the "stendo." Where the libido roams and divides endlessly, the stendo is simultaneously rooted and in constant ineffectual rotary motion. Where the libido describes a trajectory which may be taken by desire, the stendo creates tiny variations in the psyche's internal pressure, localized micro-vacuums which produce a mild yearning.