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Why is the brain divided? The difference between right and left hemispheres has been puzzled over for centuries. In a book of unprecedented scope, Iain McGilchrist draws on a vast body of recent brain research, illustrated with case histories, to reveal that the difference is profound - not just this or that function, but two whole, coherent, but incompatible ways of experiencing the world. The left hemisphere is detail-oriented, prefers mechanisms to living things, and is inclined to self-interest, where the right hemisphere has greater breadth, flexibility and generosity. This division helps explain the origins of music and language, and casts new light on the history of philosophy, as well as on some mental illnesses. In the second part of the book, he takes the reader on a journey through the history of Western culture, illustrating the tension between these two worlds as revealed in the thought and belief of thinkers and artists, from Aeschylus to Magritte. He argues that, despite its inferior grasp of reality, the left hemisphere is increasingly taking precedence in the modern world, with potentially disastrous consequences. This is truly a tour de force that should excite interest in a wide readership.

"Few books this year can match this one in breadth of erudition, scope, and ambition ... a highly stimulating read."
—Best Books of 2009' choice, Barnes & Noble

"A scintillating intelligence."
—The Economist

"This is a very remarkable book ... McGilchrist, who is both an experienced psychiatrist and a shrewd philosopher, looks at the relation between our two brain-hemispheres in a new light, not just as an interesting neurological problem but as a crucial shaping factor in our culture ... clear, penetrating, lively, thorough and fascinating ... splendidly thought-provoking ... I couldn’t put it down."
—Professor Mary Midgley, The Guardian

"A beautifully written, erudite, fascinating and adventurous book. It embraces a prodigious range of enquiry, from neurology to psychology, from philosophy to primatology, from myth to history to literature.  It goes from the microstructure of the brain to great epochs of Western civilisation, confidently and readably.  One turns its five hundred pages - a further hundred are dense with notes and references in tiny print - as if it were an adventure story...McGilchrist tells us about the rapidly evolving technologies and experimental work in fascinating and lucid detail."
—Professor AC Grayling,  Literary Review

"A landmark new book ... it tells a story you need to hear, of where we live now."
—Bryan Appleyard, Sunday Times

"A work of grand ambition, brilliantly achieved; eloquent, moving, and remarkable for the depth and scope of its scholarship."
—Professor Louis Sass, Rutgers University

"McGilchrist is a remarkable person…he has an unusual insight into art and philosophy and writes lucidly…. Voices such as McGilchrist are essential."
-Salley Vickers, Daily Telegraph

‘McGilchrist writes well, with a direct engaging style, so that a reader with no background in neuroscience could easily follow his descriptions of brain function…This is a very good book, both informative and erudite.’
-Ian Gibbins, Australian Book Review

[more reviews]

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY:
Read more about Dr Iain McGilchrist (BM, MA, FRCPsych), Quondam Fellow, All Souls College, Oxford, and Consultant Psychiatrist.

RELATED LINK:
Click here for related link.

SUBJECT CLASSIFICATIONS:
Popular science
Neurology & clinical neurophysiology
Medical anthropology

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Illustrations: 15 colour images + 20 black-&-white illustrations
Number of Pages: 448
Dewey: 612.825