I am Not a Brain

Many consider the nature of human consciousness to be one of the last great unsolved mysteries.  Why should the light turn on, so to speak, in human beings at all?  And how is the electrical storm of neurons under our skull connected with our consciousness?  Is the self only our brain’s user interface, a kind of stage on which a show is performed that we cannot freely direct?  In this book, philosopher Markus Gabriel challenges an increasing trend in the sciences towards neurocentrism, a notion which rests on the assumption that the self is identical to the brain. Gabriel raises serious doubts as to whether we can know ourselves in this way. In a sharp critique of this approach, he presents a new defense of the free will and provides a timely introduction to philosophical thought about the self – all with verve, humor, and surprising insights. Gabriel criticizes the scientific image of the world and takes us on an eclectic journey of self-reflection by way of such concepts as self, consciousness, and freedom, with the aid of Kant, Schopenhauer, and Nagel but also Dr. Who, The Walking Dead, and Fargo.

Introduction Mind and Geist Elementary Particles and Conscious Organisms The Decade of the Brain Can the Mind Be Free in a Brain Scan? The Self as a USB-Stick Neuromania and Darwinitis – The Example of Fargo Mind – Brain – Ideology The Cartography of Self-Interpretation I.  What is at Stake in the Philosophy of Mind? Mind in the Universe? In the Spirit of Hegel The Historical Animal on the Social Stage Why not Everything, but at least Something is Teleological II.  Consciousness I See Something That You Do Not See! Neuronal Thunderstorms and the Arena of Consciousness Buddha, the Snake and the Bat – Again Surfing On the Wave of Neuro-Kantianism Nothing Is Beyond Our Experience – Or Is There? Faith, Love, Hope – Are They All Just Illusions? An Altruist is Lodged in Every Ego Davidson’s Dog and Derrida’s Cat Tasty Consciousness The Intelligence of the Robot Vacuum Cleaner Strange Days – The Noise of Consciousness What Mary Still Doesn’t Know The Discovery of the Universe in a Monastery Sensations are Not Subtitles to a Chinese Movie God’s-Eye View III. Self-Consciousness How History Can Expand Our Consciousness Monads in the Mill Bio is Not Always Better than Techno How the Clown Attempted To Get Rid of Omnipotence Self-Consciousness in a Circle IV. Who or What Is This Thing We Call: The Self? The Reality of Illusions Puberty-Reductionism and the Toilet Theory Self is God Fichte: The Almost Forgotten Grandmaster of the Self The Three Pillars of the Science of Knowledge In the Human Being Nature Opens her Eyes and Sees that She Exists ‘Let Daddy Take Care of this’: Freud and Stromberg Drives Meet Hard Facts Oedipus and the Milk Carton V.  Freedom Can I Will Not to Will What I Will? The Self is Not a One-Armed Bandit Why Cause and Reason are Not the Same Thing and What That Has to Do with Tomato Sauce Friendly Smites Meanie and Defeats Metaphysical Pessimism Human Dignity is Inviolable On the Same Level as God or Nature? PS: There Are No Savages Man is Not a Face Drawn in Sand Notes Bibliography Index of Concepts Index of Names