The Matter of Mind: Reason and Experience in the Age of Descartes
Christopher Braider
What influence did René Descartes' concept of mind-body dualism have on early modern conceptions of the self? In The Matter of Mind, Christopher Braider challenges the presumed centrality of Descartes' groundbreaking theory to seventeenth-century French culture. He details the broad opposition to rational self-government among Descartes' contemporaries, and attributes conventional links between Descartes and the myth of the ‘modern subject’ to post-structuralist assessments.
The Matter of Mind presents studies drawn from a range of disciplines and examines the paintings of Nicolas Poussin, the drama of Pierre Corneille, and the theology of Blaise Pascal. Braider argues that if early modern thought ... Read more
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About Christopher Braider
Reviews for The Matter of Mind: Reason and Experience in the Age of Descartes
Edward Ousselin
French Studies, vol 66:04:2012
‘This book is a thought provoking contribution to early modern French studies.’
Paul Scott
French Review vol 88:02:2014