Mark, Vernon

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 46 | Number 2 Article 155-1-1979[Book Review of ] The Self and Its Brain: AnArgument for Interactionism, by Carl R. Popper andJohn C. EcclesVernon MarkFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqPart of the Ethics and Political Philosophy Commons, and the Medicine and Health SciencesCommonsRecommended CitationMark, Vernon (1979) "[Book Review of] The Self and Its Brain: An Argument for Interactionism, by Carl R. Popper and John C. Eccles,"The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 46: No. 2, Article 15.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol46/iss2/15Book Reviews The Self and Its Brain: An Argument for Interactionism Carl R. Popper and John C. Eccles Springer- Verlag, Ne w Yorl<, 1977. xvi + 597 pp. , $ 17.90. This vo lum e, re ly ing upon t h e a rsenal of m a n 's sophisticated inte lligence a nd stored knowle dge, attempts to reso lve the age-o ld argumen t abo u t dualism . Are the brain a nd t he m ind one e n t ity? Or are there two elements : t h e m a ter ialistic e lec troch e mica l brain , and the mind - a form of e nergy or a philosophical e n t ity wh ich is yet to be d e fin ed? This argument is not new. Indeed , Aristotle , Desca l· tes and Sir Charl es Sherrington , as well as neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield , a ll opted for t he dualistic theOl'y that mind and brai n are two sepa ra te entiti es. This book asks anoth er equall y sea rc hing questio n : can one mi x oil and water - the o il of phi losophi ca l t heory with the water of experime nta ll y based neu roph ys iol ogy? Popper, t h e emine nt phi losopher , and Eccles, the Nobe l laureate in ne urophysio logy, m ake a va lid e ffort to succeed in t his alc h em y with a n extensive di a logu e that m a kes up the thi rd part o f this volume. But t his discussion, in sea rc h of t he ultimate truth , is simpl y frosti ng on t h e cake ; t h e meat of t he book is in the first two sectio ns, one d evoted to t h e phi losoph y of "th e three worlds," and the other to a detailed descr ip t io n of what is known a bout the ne urophysiology o f the brain. Poppe l' is a cl' itic of materialism and a defender of t h e ex istence of " downwa rd causation." He appare ntly agrees w ith Spe rry that any act ion of t he mind upon the brain is m erely an instance of d ow nward causation. Pop per's phil oso phy a lso m akes a "derived " statem en t a bout natural selection. He suggests that t hi s p rocess was prev iously co nside red the result o f a mOl-e or less viol e n t st l'Uggle for life. H owever, with the em ergenc e of " n1ind ," as he views it in h is world "Three," the process of na t ural selec tion is changed. Now, as h e puts it: "We m ay le t o ur theor ies fi gh t it o u t - we m ay let o ur theol'ies di e in our stead." He h as suggested t hat in bringing abo ut t h e emerge nce of t h e mind , and hi s "world t h ree," natura l se lect ion tra nscends itsel fin te rms of its or iginal vio le nt c ha racte r. Eccles h as w l' itten a more traditional expos it io n of t h e dualist ic theory fro m a ne urophys iologi ca l point of view. In add ition , h e has prese nted a deta il ed a nd quite acc urate res ume of ne uroph ys iologica l in format ion, es pec ially as it regards "I cel'e b ral phys io logy. He introduces t h e term "the se lf consc ious mind " as a force o r propel·ty diffe l'ent fro m t he brain , and h e points out the shortcomings of o ur present neu rophys iologica l knowled ge about the ul t imate process of co n-sciousness. BI'ie fly , Eccl es thinks t hat the self-co nscious mind is an ind ependent en tity that is act ively e ngaged in rea ding o u t fr o m the multitud e of act ive centers in t h e m o dul es of t h e li aiso n areas o f the dominan t cerebral h emisph ere. He furth er bel ieves t hat this entity se lects from t hese centers in accord with its atte ntion a nd in terest, and in tegrates its selec tion to give t he uni ty of co nsc ious exper ie nce fro m moment to mome n t. He proposes that t he se l f-conscious mind exercises a superior A in te rpret ive a nd con t ro lling ro le upo n th e n eu ral events by virtue o f a two way 178 Linacre Quarterly 1\ interaction across the interface between Popper 's world one and wor ld two. He suggests that the unity of conscious experience comes not from a n ult imate synthesis in the neuro-machinery , but in t he integrating action o f the se lf-conscious mind on what it reads out from the immense d ive l-s ity of neu ral activ-ities in the liaison brain. Popper and Eccles have made a valid effort to marshall the a rguments that substantiate their theories and direct science and civi li zation on a new pathway. But have they really succeeded? Or does the thoro ugh mix ing of oi l a nd wate r st ill leave a murky solution, obscur ing our view of the real truth that will ultimate ly provide a solution to t he mystery of the m ind? Popper, at least , comments upon views opposing his own , albeit in a highl y critical fashion. Eccles ignores th e evidence indicating the identity of mind and bl·ain. Specifica ll y, he does not men t ion the work of George Elliot Coghi ll or the Herrick brothers, nor does he review , in detai l, t he unifyi ng t heories of Magoun concerning states of conscious-ness and the brain stem is reticu lar for mation. For all the evidence that Eccles has m arshall ed, he still has fa il ed to separate clearly t he "self consc ious mind" fro m t he central nervo us system . And as for the theory of dualism propounded in this book , I am afraid t hat t he best I can give it, is a Scotch verdict - "unproved." - Vernon Mark , M.D., F.A.C.S. Director, Neurological Services Boston City Hospital Official Catholic Teachings: Love and Sexuality Odile M_ Liebard, Editor McGrath Publishing, Wilmington , N.C., 1978.496 pp., $15.95. This is an excell ent collect io n of encycl ica l letters , papal addresses and pastoral lette rs regarding t he Catholic Church's teachings on the sanctity of sex , marriage , procreation, family a nd human li fe, born and unborn. Of special in teres t and significance are the docu m ents concerning the Chu rch's cou rageo us, fil'ml y and unco mpro misi ngly held , ast u tely a rgued and eloquently ex pressed conviction that human life, born and unborn, is a gift from God. From a theological perspective, the National Conference of Catholi c Bishops of America clearly is right to maintain , as it did on Nov. 15 , 1968 t hat, "We are convinced that belief in God is in t imately bound lip with devotion to life. God is the ul t imate source of life, His Son its Redeemer, so t hat den ial of God under-mines the sanctity of li fe itself." The Bishops' Statem ent is buttressed by a Dec-laration o n Abortion issued by the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith o n Nov. 18, 1974. The Declaration sa id : "Hum an life is constantl y under God 's protection ; the blood of man cries out to Him (See Gn. 4 , 10) and He will demand an accounting for it: 'For in the image of God has man been made' (Gn. 9,5-6). 'You shall not kill' (Ex. 20 , 13) is God's comm andment." The Sacred Congregation fo r the Doctrine of the Fai t h sees abort ion for what it trul y is: a terr ible, horrifying act of injustice which degrades man. T he Congre-May, 1979 179 

[Book Review of] \u3cem\u3eThe Self and Its Brain: An Argument for Interactionism\u3c/em\u3e, by Carl R. Popper and John C. Eccles

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[Book Review of] \u3cem\u3eThe Self and Its Brain: An Argument for Interactionism\u3c/em\u3e, by Carl R. Popper and John C. Eccles

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