Descartes' Error: Emotion, Reason, and the Human Brain
Books / Paperback
Books › Psychology › Emotions
ISBN: 014303622X / Publisher: Penguin Books, September 2005
Linking the process of rational decision making to emotions, a scientist who has done extensive research with brain-damaged patients notes the dependence of thought processes on feelings and the body's survival-oriented regulators. Reprint.
Read More
"An ambitious and meticulous foray into the nature of being." -- The Boston GlobeA landmark exploration of the relationship between emotion and reasonSince Descartes famously proclaimed, "I think, therefore I am," science has often overlooked emotions as the source of a person’s true being. Even modern neuroscience has tended, until recently, to concentrate on the cognitive aspects of brain function, disregarding emotions. This attitude began to change with the publication of Descartes’ Error in 1995. Antonio Damasio—"one of the world’s leading neurologists" (The New York Times)—challenged traditional ideas about the connection between emotions and rationality. In this wondrously engaging book, Damasio takes the reader on a journey of scientific discovery through a series of case studies, demonstrating what many of us have long suspected: emotions are not a luxury, they are essential to rational thinking and to normal social behavior.
Read Less