The narrative brain : the stories our neurons tell / Fritz Breithaupt.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Breithaupt, Fritz, 1967- Author.

Standardized Title:

Narrative gehirn. English

Language:

English

German

Subjects (All):

Language and emotions.

Narration (Rhetoric).

Storytelling.

Physical Description:

284 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Other Title:

Stories our neurons tell

Place of Publication:

New Haven : Yale University Press, [2025]

Language Note:

Text in English, translated from the German.

Summary:

"As humans, we think in stories--stories that allow us to feel and share emotions. In order for this phenomenon to work, our brains and the ways in which we tell stories must be attuned to each other. But how exactly does this happen? Tapping into the essence of thinking in stories, Fritz Breithaupt draws on the latest scientific research, including a retelling study (comparable to the telephone game) with more than 12,000 participants, and experiments in which ChatGPT functions as storyteller. This wide-ranging study includes analyses of political history, novels, fairy tales, and everyday office gossip; proposes a new theory of narrative that focuses on emotions and affects; and hypothesizes on the evolution of narratives among our hominid ancestors. Redefining us as beings who anchor ourselves in the world through narratives, Breithaupt introduces a new kind of psychology that cuts to the core of how and why humans feel the need to tell stories."-- Publisher's description.

Contents:

Thinking in episodes : from chaos to order

Telephone games

Emotions as reward for narrative thinking

Narratives as response to a crisis

Narrative characters

Multiversional reality, multiversional narratives

Evolution of the narrative brain : the stage as the birthplace of the mobility of consciousness.

Notes:

"Originally published in Germany as Das narrative Gehirn: Was unsere Neuronen erzahlen"-- Title page verso.

"Translated and revised by the author"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780300273809

0300273800

OCLC:

1449673074

Publisher Number:

90104660655