David Williams

The Trickster Brain

Neuroscience, Evolution, and Narrative

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

Until recently, scientific and literary cultures have existed side-by-side but most often in parallel universes, without connection. The Trickster Brain: Neuroscience, Evolution, and Nature by David Williams addresses the premise that humans are a biological species stemming from the long process of evolution, and that we do exhibit a universal human nature, given to us through our genes. From this perspective, literature is shown to be a product of our biological selves. By exploring central ideas in neuroscience, evolutionary biology, linguistics, music, philosophy, ethics, religion, and history, Williams shows that it is the circuitry of the brain's hard-wired dispositions that continually create similar tales around the world: "archetypal" stories reflecting ancient tensions that arose from our evolutionary past and the very construction of our brains. The book asserts that to truly understand literature, one must look at the biological creature creating it. By using the lens of science to examine literature, we can see how stories reveal universal aspects of the biological mind. The Trickster character is particularly instructive as an archetypal character who embodies a raft of human traits and concerns, for Trickster is often god, devil, musical, sexual, silver tongued, animal, and human at once, treading upon the moral dictates of culture. Williams brings together science and the humanities, demonstrating a critical way of approaching literature that incorporates scientific thought.

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Produktdetails

• Verlag: Globe Pequot Publishing Group Inc/Bloomsbury
• Seitenzahl: 314
• Erscheinungstermin: 29. Mai 2012
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 235mm x 157mm x 23mm
• Gewicht: 664g
• ISBN-13: 9780739143971
• ISBN-10: 0739143972
• Artikelnr.: 35340075

Autorenporträt

David Williams and David Peacock

Inhaltsangabe

Introduction Chapter 1: Searching for Trickster Chapter 2: The Silver
Tongued Devil Archetypes Where is Science in the Study of Literature?
Universal Human Nature Textual Authority vs. Empirical Evidence How Did
Language Begin? Chomsky Schema Theory Chapter 3: The Tricksterish Brain
Chapter 4: Evolution Chapter 5: The Brain of Sex Sex, Disease, and
Competition Displays The Sexiest Animals Ornamental Mind Chapter 6: The
Brain of Love and War Sexual Selection and Altruism Monogamy? Women and War
Civilization and Enslavement of Women Why Love? The Power of Love: Women's
Songs of Love from Afghanistan Chapter 7: The Brain of Song Music and
Language-Common Roots Two Camps Why Did Music and Language Split? Music and
Food Sexual Selection for Music Tribal Songs for Every Aspect of Life
Chapter 8: Ethics The Falacy of the Naturalistic Fallacy: Is-Ought Fairness
and Justice in the Animal World Chapter 9: Storytelling and the Theory of
Mind Unconsciousness & Consciousness Theory of Mind Chapter 10: The Brain
of God Potheism/Monotheism and the Search for Meaning Why God? What Caused
Religion? Origins of Religion Other Explanations Chapter 11: The Trickster
of Mythology Why Trickster? Trickster Biological Origins Chapter 12: A
Swath of Trickster Stories from Oral Literature Sex, Desire, and the Body
Some Trickster Stories from Around the World Coyote Marries a Man (Plains
Cree, North America) A Contest for Wives (Cochiti, North America) Legba
(Fon, West Africa) Coyote Visits the Women (Assiniboine, North America)
Coyote and His Anus (Nez Perce, North America) The Trickster Myth
(Winnebago, North America) excerpts Uncle Tompa (Tibet) Namaranganin
(Aborigine, Australia) Coyote Sleeps with His Own Daughters (Southern Ute,
North America) How Kwaku Ananse Got Aso in Marriage (Ashanti, Africa)
Coyote Keeps his Dead Wife's Genitals (Lipan Apache, North America) Chapter
13: Female Tricksters Evil Woman Trickster Stories The Toothed Vagina
(Yurok, North America) Teeth in the Wrong Place (Ponca-Otoe, North America)
The Witch Wife (Colombia) Proverbs 5, 3-8 (Hebrew) Clever/Good Women
Trickster Stories Old Man Coyote Meets Coyote Woman (Blackfoot, North
America) The Most Precious Thing in the World (Hebrew) The Clever
Daughter-in-Law (Kanda, India) The Wife who Refused to be Beaten (Kashmiri,
India) One More Use for Artists (Gujerti, India) The Faithful Wife and the
Woman Warrior (Tiwa, North America) A Pueblo tale featuring Apache
characters Iktome Sleeps with His Wife by Mistake (Brule Sioux, North
America) Chapter 14: Literary Filters Chapter 15: Music and the Trickster
Literary Filters Music and the Trickster Singing the World Into Being:
Creation Stories with Song Apache Creation Story (North America) Creation
Story (Hopi, North America) Bunjil The Creator #1 (Aboriginal, Australian)
Diné (or Navajo) (North America) Mythic Trickster Musicians and Singers
Ajapa and the Roasted-Peanut Seller (Yoruba, Africa) Coyote Giving (Paiute,
North America) Hermes (Greek) Hanuman (India) The Zande Trickster, Tule;
The Bushman (Africa) Chapter 16: A Swath of Other Trickster Stories from
Around the World The Wonderful Tar Baby Story (African American) John
(African American) How the Wicked Tanuki was Punished (Japan) Fox and
Snake-Good is Repaid with Evil (Venezuela) Sun Wu-K'Ung, The Monkey King
(China) Dionysus (Greek) The Wanderings of Dionysus (Greek) Prometheus
(Greek) Pandora (Greek) Orpheus (Greek) Coyote and the Shadow People (Nez
Perce, America) The Infancy Gospel of Thomas (Apocrophy Gospel, 2nd
century) Jesus Child (Quichua, Ecuador) Jesus Christ (Cakchiquel Maya
(Guatemala)/ Matias Sicajan) We-Gyet ('Ksan, Northwest Coast) Chapter 17:
The Trickster Personified The Heyoka Ceremony Buddhist Clowns Jewish and
Christian Clowns Other Clowns Islamic Clown Jesters Kannada; Tamil; Telugu
(India) How Tamali Rama Became A Jester (India) Tamali Rama Recites Story
of Ramayna (India) Tyll Ulenspiegel's Merry Prank (Germany) Quevedo and the
King (Mexico) Chapter 18: Blues & Courting Tricksters Chapter 19: Trickster
in Written Literature Chapter 20: Trickster Was Wandering