Descartes and the passionate mind / Deborah J. Brown.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Brown, Deborah J. (Deborah Jean), 1963-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Descartes, René, 1596-1650.

Descartes, René.

Physical Description:

xi, 231 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2006.

Summary:

Descartes is often accused of having fragmented the human being into two independent substances, mind and body, with no clear strategy for explaining the apparent unity of human experience. Deborah Brown argues that, contrary to this view, Descartes did in fact have a conception of a single, integrated human being, and that in his view this conception is crucial to the success of human beings as rational and moral agents and as practitioners of science. The passions are pivotal in this, and in a rich and wide-ranging discussion she examines Descartes' place in the tradition of thought about the passions, the metaphysics of actions and passions, sensory representation, and Descartes' account of self-mastery and virtue. Her study is an important and original reading not only of Descartes' account of mind-body unity but also of his theory of mind.

Contents:

1 Volo ergo sum: the unity and significance of Les Passions de l'ame 11

2 Perturbations or sweet pleasures? Descartes' place in two traditions regarding the passions 28

3 The natural integration of reason and passion 55

4 Representing and referring 84

5 Action and passion: metaphysical integrationism 116

6 Wonder and love: extending the boundaries of the Cartesian knower and the Cartesian self 141

7 Several strange passages on desire and fortune 165

8 Generosity breeds content: self-mastery through self-esteem 188.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 210-223) and index.

ISBN:

0521857287

OCLC:

70231516

Publisher Number:

9780521857284