Who Are You?
If minds are brains, we need to rethink common conceptions of the nature of persons and the self. The
religious idea of the immortal soul provided an appealing picture of the self as a spiritual entity, but
overcoming the soul illusion requires a dramatic shift in how we view ourselves. The empiricist
philosopher David Hume argued that there is nothing more to the self than a bundle of perceptions, but
our thinking seems more unified than just a series of sensory experiences. Immanuel Kant sought such
unity in transcendental selves that make all experience possible, but there is no more evidence for
such entities than there is for souls. Can understanding the brain tell us anything about the nature of
persons and start to answer the troubling question of who you are?
The Brain Revolution requires a major conceptual shift about the self, from viewing our selves as
things to viewing them as complex processes. The neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux eloquently writes:
In my view, the self is the totality of what an organism is physically, biologically, psychologically, socially, and culturally. Though it
is a unit, it is not unitary. It includes things that we know and things that we do not know, things that others know about us that we
do not realize. It includes features that we express and hide, and some that we simply don't call upon. It includes what we would
like to be as well as what we hope to never become.
LeDoux describes how the brain employs both parallel plasticity, which is learning occurring in
diverse brain systems, and convergence zones, which are regions where information from diverse
systems can be integrated. This combination explains how the self can possess a unity in diversity.
Thinking of the self as a complex neural system takes us far from common sense, and further
departures are required. A full theory of the self remains to be developed, drawing not only on
neuroscience but also on social psychology, which discusses such topics as self-regulation, selfesteem,
and cultural variations in self-concepts. In Chapter 5, I will argue that full understanding of
emotions and other aspects of the self requires attention to mechanisms that operate at four different
levels, including the molecular, psychological, and social as well as the neural. The discussion of
moral responsibility in Chapter 9 will treat persons as inherently part of their social worlds,
requiring attention to social relations as well as neural mechanisms. Claiming that minds are brains is
compatible with the social character of persons and the self.
Who Are You?If minds are brains, we need to rethink common conceptions of the nature of persons and the self. Thereligious idea of the immortal soul provided an appealing picture of the self as a spiritual entity, butovercoming the soul illusion requires a dramatic shift in how we view ourselves. The empiricistphilosopher David Hume argued that there is nothing more to the self than a bundle of perceptions, butour thinking seems more unified than just a series of sensory experiences. Immanuel Kant sought suchunity in transcendental selves that make all experience possible, but there is no more evidence forsuch entities than there is for souls. Can understanding the brain tell us anything about the nature ofpersons and start to answer the troubling question of who you are?The Brain Revolution requires a major conceptual shift about the self, from viewing our selves asthings to viewing them as complex processes. The neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux eloquently writes:In my view, the self is the totality of what an organism is physically, biologically, psychologically, socially, and culturally. Though itis a unit, it is not unitary. It includes things that we know and things that we do not know, things that others know about us that wedo not realize. It includes features that we express and hide, and some that we simply don't call upon. It includes what we wouldlike to be as well as what we hope to never become.LeDoux describes how the brain employs both parallel plasticity, which is learning occurring indiverse brain systems, and convergence zones, which are regions where information from diversesystems can be integrated. This combination explains how the self can possess a unity in diversity.Thinking of the self as a complex neural system takes us far from common sense, and furtherdepartures are required. A full theory of the self remains to be developed, drawing not only onneuroscience but also on social psychology, which discusses such topics as self-regulation, selfesteem,and cultural variations in self-concepts. In Chapter 5, I will argue that full understanding ofemotions and other aspects of the self requires attention to mechanisms that operate at four differentlevels, including the molecular, psychological, and social as well as the neural. The discussion ofmoral responsibility in Chapter 9 will treat persons as inherently part of their social worlds,requiring attention to social relations as well as neural mechanisms. Claiming that minds are brains iscompatible with the social character of persons and the self.
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..
