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The Face in the Mirror: How We Know Who We Are

by Julian Keenan

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Tracing the science of self-recognition

$17.20 USD
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Paperback New English

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AlbakiReads Editorial

Tracing the science of self-recognition

Self-recognition is presented here as a neurological and evolutionary question rather than a simple everyday skill. Julian Keenan examines the brain systems associated with recognizing one’s own image, placing human mirror recognition alongside research on other animals. The book also considers what happens when this capacity is disrupted, drawing on cases involving people who no longer recognize themselves. Connections to anthropology and psychology broaden the inquiry beyond mirrors, linking self-awareness with emotions including humor, embarrassment, and jealousy. It offers a cross-disciplinary exploration of how an individual sense of self may arise and why that ability matters in human evolution and survival.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in cognitive psychology and neuroscience
  • Those curious about animal cognition and human evolution
  • Readers drawn to case-based explorations of identity and self-awareness

Themes

Self-recognitionNeuroscienceSelf-awarenessAnimal cognitionIdentity

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Book overview

We've all witnessed this moment: a dog, a cat, or another animal reacting to its own reflection in the mirror, treating it as another animal to be played with or confronted. As human beings, we take self-recognition for granted, but this seemingly simple ability represents one of the most complex mysteries of neuroscience. The Face in the Mirror takes readers on a lively tour of the neurological, anthropological, and psychological roots of self-recognition -- from the intricate network in the brain that enables higher primates to recognize their image to complex, self-related emotions such as humor, embarrassment, and jealousy that play a crucial role in our evolution and survival. From animals who share our ability for self-recognition to case studies of patients who no longer recognize who they are, the authors examine some of the latest evidence on a subject that has puzzled philosophers and scientists for millennia -- how do we know who we are?

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