The Monist, Vol. 3, 1892-1893 : $b A quarterly magazineVarious
Philosophy
The Monist, Vol. 3, 1892-1893 : $b A quarterly magazine
Various
Philosophy -- Periodicals
In the present work, the accomplished director of the laboratory of
physiological psychology at the Sorbonne has brought together and
systematised all the most reliable phenomena bearing on one of the most
curious subjects of inquiry now engaging attention. Notwithstanding the
disagreement between different experimenters as to particular facts,
all have arrived at the conclusion that, under special conditions, the
normal unity of consciousness may be broken, and that then there is
the production of several distinct consciousnesses “each of which can
have its perceptions, its memory, and even its moral character.” No
one is better fitted than M. Binet to perform the eclectic work he has
undertaken of discussing the recent researches on the alteration of
personality, without regard to the special views of particular schools.
The subject is considered by him under the three heads of Successive
Personalities, Coexisting Personalities, and The Alterations of
Personality in the Experiences of Suggestion. The two first parts deal
chiefly with phenomena presented by somnambulic and hysteric subjects.
In the third part M. Binet applies the fact of the duplication of
personality to the explanation of the phenomena of spiritism, the term he
very properly gives to so-called spiritualism. He regards the supposed
spirit agent as the subconscious personality of the medium acting under
the influence of suggestion, a view which undoubtedly meets most of the
actual facts of spiritism.
Notwithstanding the divisibility of the ego, there can be no doubt of
the unity of the personality under normal conditions. The question is
as to the nature of this unity, and the author follows M. Ribot in
affirming that it consists in the coördination of the elements which
compose it. He repudiates the idea that memory is the sole foundation of
consciousness, as not only may one memory embrace different states, but
the same individual may have several memories, several consciousnesses,
and several personalities. For the opinion of M. Binet on other points
we must refer our readers to the work itself, which forms an important
addition to the International Scientific Library.
Ω.
L’HOMME DANS LA NATURE. By _Paul Topinard_. With 101 Illustrations in the
text. Paris: Félix Alcan. 1891. Pp. 350. Price, 6 fr.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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