Intention, Object, Objective

In its common use, 'intention' means 'conscious objective'. In contrast, for Brentano and his followers, it means 'Consciousness of an object'. Hence, there are two main differences between the two types of intention. First, one is practical, and the other is cognitive. Second, one aims at an action, while the other aims at a thing. Despite the sharp distinction, Sartre, at times, indiscriminately vacillates between the two, e. g. a Consciousness of the possibility of sitting down is also a Consciousness of a nearby chair. Elsewhere, though, the priority for him of the cognitive version is in evidence, e. g. in his analysis of Imagination. Merleau-Ponty likewise vacillates, between the intention that guides bodily motion, and the intention that discloses a thing. That Consciousness is Consciousness of an objective follows from his assertion that Consciousness is 'I can'. But, that Consciousness is Consciousness of an object defines the functioning of the Phenomenological gaze, which is the primary principle of his study of lived experience.