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Solms and Turnbull engage one immediately with the current debate about the mind- brain relationship. They seek to link the invisible world of subjectivity with the visible tissues of the brain and in so doing become powerful advocates for the newly fledged discipline of neuropsychoanalysis. In his foreword Oliver Sachs reminds us of Solms’ over-arching ambition to examine the relationship between psychoanalysis and neuropsychology and to show that psychoanalysis is based on sound neurological principles. This book engages with complex ideas of both in an open-minded and accessible way, encouraging the reader to a deeper understanding of both mind and brain and the relationship between the two.
The authors begin by offering a beginner's guide to the brain that is clear, concise and presented in a form that enables the lay analyst to assimilate the terms and concepts from neuroscience that are required to understand this area of study. Subsequent chapters explore the nature of the mind and of consciousness, seeking to answer questions such as ‘What exactly, are the neural mechanisms that generate our awareness of our selves interacting with objects?’ (p. xiv). The integration of the outer world of experience with the inner world, built up of traces of previous experience, and of our internal perceptions, which are in turn perceptions of our bodily selves, is the ongoing task of the brain. The visceral body is described as ‘the bedrock of consciousness’. Solms and Turnbull argue the importance of such study, suggesting that ‘linking the invisible world of feelings, thought and memories with the visible tissues of the body that generate them renders them far more accessible to scientific scrutiny’ (p. 43).
In their exploration of the development of neuroscience and its relation to psychoanalysis the authors visit the works of scientists and philosophers, presenting thumbnail sketches that invite the reader to further exploration. However, the ideas of Damasio (1999) on s