The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday LifeOxford University Press, 01/12/2017 - 288 من الصفحات Human beings are primates, and primates are political animals. Our brains, therefore, are designed not just to hunt and gather, but also to help us get ahead socially, often via deception and self-deception. But while we may be self-interested schemers, we benefit by pretending otherwise. The less we know about our own ugly motives, the better - and thus we don't like to talk or even think about the extent of our selfishness. This is "the elephant in the brain." Such an introspective taboo makes it hard for us to think clearly about our nature and the explanations for our behavior. The aim of this book, then, is to confront our hidden motives directly - to track down the darker, unexamined corners of our psyches and blast them with floodlights. Then, once everything is clearly visible, we can work to better understand ourselves: Why do we laugh? Why are artists sexy? Why do we brag about travel? Why do we prefer to speak rather than listen? Our unconscious motives drive more than just our private behavior; they also infect our venerated social institutions such as Art, School, Charity, Medicine, Politics, and Religion. In fact, these institutions are in many ways designed to accommodate our hidden motives, to serve covert agendas alongside their "official" ones. The existence of big hidden motives can upend the usual political debates, leading one to question the legitimacy of these social institutions, and of standard policies designed to favor or discourage them. You won't see yourself - or the world - the same after confronting the elephant in the brain. |
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الصفحة 11
... sense of it, especially the parts that are otherwise counterintuitive. Why do people laugh? Who's the most important person in the room (and how can I tell)? Why are artists sexy? Why do so many people brag about travel? Does anyone ...
... sense of it, especially the parts that are otherwise counterintuitive. Why do people laugh? Who's the most important person in the room (and how can I tell)? Why are artists sexy? Why do so many people brag about travel? Does anyone ...
الصفحة 13
... as unselfish in front of others; it helps us look better than we really are. Confronting our delusions must therefore (at least in part) undermine their very reason for existing. There's a very real sense in which we INTRODUCTION 13.
... as unselfish in front of others; it helps us look better than we really are. Confronting our delusions must therefore (at least in part) undermine their very reason for existing. There's a very real sense in which we INTRODUCTION 13.
الصفحة 14
... sense in which we might be better off not knowing what we're up to. But we see this choice— of whether to look inward and confront the elephant or continue to avert our gaze— as similar to the choice Morpheus offers Neo in The Matrix ...
... sense in which we might be better off not knowing what we're up to. But we see this choice— of whether to look inward and confront the elephant or continue to avert our gaze— as similar to the choice Morpheus offers Neo in The Matrix ...
الصفحة 19
... sense according to the strictly hygienic function. For example, it explains why higher- ranked individuals receive more grooming than lower- ranked individuals.10 When low- ranking primates choose to groom one of their superiors, they ...
... sense according to the strictly hygienic function. For example, it explains why higher- ranked individuals receive more grooming than lower- ranked individuals.10 When low- ranking primates choose to groom one of their superiors, they ...
الصفحة 22
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