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The Animal and the Thinker: Instinct, Reason and the Dance of Our Divided Selves
The big questions of our lives bring fierce debates. Right and wrong. Freedom and responsibility. Women and men. Democracy and justice. Ambition and fulfilment. Where do answers lie in a mind that produces the many sides and needs of humanity?
In The Animal and the Thinker , pioneering neuroscientist John Duncan lays out the principles, strengths and weaknesses of two sides of ourselves. One side follows the principles of instinctive animal behaviour. It is elaborate, sophisticated, conflicted yet essential - without it, our life would have no meaning. On the other side is our rational brain. It generates an infinite world of new ideas, but often, its need for focus generates sterile social beliefs and destructive culture wars. Our rational side is brilliant, but often, it is wrong.
For thousands of years, writers, thinkers and philosophers have seen human life as a war between Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Duncan shows that there is no war. To bring humanity and reality to the great, conflicted questions of our lives, we need the dance between these two essential sides of ourselves.
In The Animal and the Thinker , pioneering neuroscientist John Duncan lays out the principles, strengths and weaknesses of two sides of ourselves. One side follows the principles of instinctive animal behaviour. It is elaborate, sophisticated, conflicted yet essential - without it, our life would have no meaning. On the other side is our rational brain. It generates an infinite world of new ideas, but often, its need for focus generates sterile social beliefs and destructive culture wars. Our rational side is brilliant, but often, it is wrong.
For thousands of years, writers, thinkers and philosophers have seen human life as a war between Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Duncan shows that there is no war. To bring humanity and reality to the great, conflicted questions of our lives, we need the dance between these two essential sides of ourselves.
- GenresPsychology
414 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 10, 2025
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51 people want to read
About the author
John Duncan
227 books4 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
John Duncan
John Duncan, d. 1941 John^^^Duncan: Science
John Duncan (1866 - 1945) John^^^^Duncan: Scottish artist
John 8^ Duncan: Scottish Travels in Western Africa
John Duncan
John Duncan, d. 1941 John^^^Duncan: Science
John Duncan (1866 - 1945) John^^^^Duncan: Scottish artist
John 8^ Duncan: Scottish Travels in Western Africa
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 1, 2025
Dit boek duurde echt lang hahahah. Was moeilijk doorkomen. Ergens interessant, maar veel herhaling en eigenlijk een moeilijke verwoording van dingen die makkelijk te begrijpen zijn. Zou hem eigenlijk een 2.5 geven, maar dat kan niet, dus voordeel van de twijfel!
Displaying 1 of 1 review