{"product_id":"the-self-beyond-itself-an-alternative-history-of-ethics-the-new-brain-sciences-and-the-myth-of-free-will-9781595585370","title":"The Self Beyond Itself: An Alternative History of Ethics, the New Brain Sciences, and the Myth of Free Will","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"Intertwines history, philosophy, and science\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e . . . \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eA powerful challenge to conventional notions of individual responsibility\" (\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Few concepts are more unshakable in our culture than free will, the idea that individuals are fundamentally in control of the decisions they make, good or bad. And yet the latest research about how the brain functions seems to point in the opposite direction . . . \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In a work of breathtaking intellectual sweep and erudition, Heidi M. Ravven offers a riveting and accessible review of cutting-edge neuroscientific research into the brain's capacity for decision-making--from \"mirror\" neurons and \"self-mapping\" to surprising new understandings of group psychology. \u003ci\u003eThe Self Beyond Itself \u003c\/i\u003ealso introduces readers to a rich, alternative philosophical tradition of ethics, rooted in the writing of Baruch Spinoza, that finds uncanny confirmation in modern science. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Illustrating the results of today's research with real-life examples, taking readers from elementary school classrooms to Nazi concentration camps, Ravven demonstrates that it is possible to build a theory of ethics that doesn't rely on free will yet still holds both individuals and groups responsible for the decisions that help create a good society. \u003ci\u003eThe Self Beyond Itself \u003c\/i\u003eis that rare book that injects new ideas into an old debate--and \"an important contribution to the development of our thinking about morality\" (\u003ci\u003eWashington Independent Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e). \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"An intellectual hand-grenade . . . A magisterial survey of how contemporary neuroscience supports a vision of human morality which puts it squarely on the same plane as other natural phenomena.\" --William D. Casebeer, author of \u003ci\u003eNatural Ethical Facts\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHeidi M. Ravven\u003c\/b\u003e is a professor of religious studies at Hamilton College. A founding member of the Society for Empirical Ethics, she has published widely in interdisciplinary journals and is the co-editor of \u003ci\u003eJewish Themes in Spinoza's Philosophy\u003c\/i\u003e. She lives in Cazenovia, New York.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"New Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50358911238418,"sku":"9781595585370","price":25.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_a3a5cc7f-104b-4b0a-a5ca-1b0cf56294bc.jpg?v=1728348326","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-self-beyond-itself-an-alternative-history-of-ethics-the-new-brain-sciences-and-the-myth-of-free-will-9781595585370","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}