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neekah's review against another edition
5.0
A really great read for a layperson like me. I found so many of my questions in this book, not necessarily answered, but at least acknowledged.
robotowilliam's review against another edition
3.0
I was looking for something a bit more abstract and on one specific question I have, and although it came up in a way, this book is more of a whirlwind tour of the available perspectives on 'self' and 'identity'.
Good and emminently readable, just didn't contain anything new to me :P
Good and emminently readable, just didn't contain anything new to me :P
icallaci's review against another edition
3.0
I thought this would have some neuroscience behind it but it was all philosophy and thought experiments that went nowhere. I did, however, find intriguing the idea that because each of us influences the people we come in contact with (and they influence us), in a sense we merge our selves with the selves of those closest to us, so that our selves are not contained in just one lonely body. I need to think about that a little more.
bethb3's review against another edition
3.0
After a LONG hiatus...I finally finished!
I wouldn't call this an enjoyable read, but it definitely was an interesting one. I was taking copious notes with questions, tangential thoughts, etc when I first started reading and found the beginning to be very thought-provoking. As it got more into the religious aspect, I didn't find it quite as interesting and the portions about death and the afterlife were not as intriguing. By that point, I had basically stopped taking notes and just read it to finish it. Overall, if anyone has an interest in philosophy or the soul/self concept, this is a well-researched book worth reading.
I wouldn't call this an enjoyable read, but it definitely was an interesting one. I was taking copious notes with questions, tangential thoughts, etc when I first started reading and found the beginning to be very thought-provoking. As it got more into the religious aspect, I didn't find it quite as interesting and the portions about death and the afterlife were not as intriguing. By that point, I had basically stopped taking notes and just read it to finish it. Overall, if anyone has an interest in philosophy or the soul/self concept, this is a well-researched book worth reading.
janajaewilson's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.0
Because I think Tom hiddlestons mind is gorgeous, I have him to thank for even finding out about this book. It had some very interesting concepts about how to view identity and how different people view themselves. I will definitely be coming back to this book to refer to the quotes I highlighted
jacob_longini's review against another edition
4.0
I read Baggini's book in an interdisciplinary class on the science and nature of the self. Taught in concert by a philosophy professor and the head of the psychology department, we first read Bruce Hood's book, The Self Illusion, before moving on to this one. In this way, we tackled ideas of "the self" in many realms, primarily those of neuropsychology and philosophy. This book was a wonderful way to tie together the disparate findings and conclude the class. Baggini looks at the nature of the self from an incredibly diverse group of sources, including eastern religions, psychological experiments, individual experiences, and philosophical writings. He develops a solid understanding of what it is like to experience "the self" before exploring at length why this is the case. Finally, he constructs a theory of the nature of the self, what makes it up, and why this matters. Regardless of whether you agree with his argument (which I do), you will make discoveries about your"self" along the way.