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Constructing the Self
Constructing the Self analyzes the narrative conception of self, filling a serious gap in philosophy and grounding discussion in other disciplines. It answers the questions:
- What are the connections between our interpretations, selfhood, and conscious phenomenal experience?
- Why do we believe that our interpretations of our life-defining events are narrative in nature?
- From the myriad of thoughts, actions, and emotions which constitute our experiences, how do we choose what is interpretively important, the tiny subset that composes the self?
By synthesizing the different approaches to understanding the self from philosophy of mind, developmental psychology, psychopathology, and cognitive science, this monograph gives us deeper insight into what being minded, being a person, and having a self are, as well as clarifies the difference and relation between conscious and unconscious mental states and normal and abnormal minds. The explication also affords new perspectives on human development and human emotion. (Series A)
[Advances in Consciousness Research, 73] 2008. xi, 186 pp.
Publishing status: Available
Published online on 19 September 2008
Published online on 19 September 2008
© John Benjamins Publishing Company
Table of Contents
- Preface | pp. ix–xi
- Chapter 1. On being a person | pp. 1–20
- Chapter 2. Self stories | pp. 21–33
- Chapter 3. Self stories | pp. 35–50
- Chapter 4. The development of Self | pp. 51–65
- Chapter 6. Unconscious mental life | pp. 67–109
- Chapter 7. Multiplex and multiple selves | pp. 111–126
- Chapter 8. Life at the borders | pp. 127–143
- Chapter 9. Death, violence and the myth of autonomy | pp. 145–158
- Endnote | pp. 159–160
- Figures
“Constructing the Self is an absorbing and thoughtful reflection on the narrative self. [...] The writing troughout is levely and engaging, and the book is delightfully easy to read. This is no small accomplishment given the depth and intricacy of the material. [...] Constructing the Self is an instructive and provocative book, and a welcome resource for anyone interested in problems of the self.”
Marya Schechtman, in Biography, Vol. 32.4 (Fall 2009)
“Constructing the self covers a very interesting topic in the philosophy of mind, and it is written in an approachable and engaging style.”
Phil Jenkins, Marywood University, in Philosophical Psychology, Vol. 24, No. 6, 2011, pag. 873-876
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