Beyond the Conscious Mind: Unlocking the Secrets of the Self [Paperback]

Thomas Blakeslee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 9, 2004

A new understanding of consciousness that helps you to better understand your own and others behavior. Your mind is a self-organized team of specialized independent modules that each take control of your behavior depending upon context. One of these modules, the "self-module," is the verbal interpreter of all of your behavior. However this self-module only controls behavior when you are using self-control. Introspection is thus usually nothing more than self-serving rationalization. Using experimental evidence Blakeslee clearly demonstrates the many mental illusions created by this flawed understanding of self and helps you to develop a new, more accurate, self-concept.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thomas R. Blakeslee's books have been published in nine languages. His best-sellers, Digital Design (Wiley, 1975) and The Right Brain (Doubleday, 1980) cross-fertilize here into an exciting new understanding of consciousness. Blakeslee has founded three companies and holds patents in such diverse fields as vehicle guidance, digital telephony, information display, photography, hydraulics, and electronic circuits. His website is www.attitudefactor.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: Backinprint.com (December 9, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595338488
• ISBN-13: 978-0595338481
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,554,610 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enriching, Accessible and Thought-Provoking, September 7, 1998

By 

Peter A. Farrell (San Mateo, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond the Conscious Mind: Unlocking the Secrets of the Self (Hardcover)

Our beliefs may be false (a revelation which had a profound impact on me) and the accuracy of our powers of introspection may be suspect, but our emotions are logical (!) and we can think and communicate non-verbally, not to mention the creative powers we have left untapped. I wish this had been the textbook for my high school psychology class.

Right from page 1 the author has his work cut out for him: explaining the self-organizing nature of the brain and what this means for our consciousness. Blakeslee does this brilliantly with numerous examples of self-organizing systems (like a beehive) that even a non-scientist can understand. Without getting bogged down in technical descriptions or getting lost down philosophical dead-ends, Blakeslee introduces us to our "self module", only one among many talents at our disposal. After describing what this language-bound module can do (and what it can't do, but other modules can), he masterfully applies this knowledge to our everyday lives: our emotions, education, beliefs, our children, sports, music, and creativity.

The book lives up to its name, because I have never read another book on consciousness which really introduces you to nonverbal thinking, a large and thought-provoking chapter in the book. From the famous Libet "consciousness time-lag" experiment, Blakeslee bravely follows the ramifications this presents for the self module, and reveals the equally disconcerting possibilities it holds beyond the conscious mind.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Could not put it down, great book., June 7, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Phoenix, Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond the Conscious Mind: Unlocking the Secrets of the Self (Hardcover)

This book is probably one of the most interesting books I have read. It is easy to read and revolutionary at the same time. I stumbled across this book at the University of Arizona College Book Store. Otherwise, I would never have found it. I am completely baffled as to why this book is currently out of print. If you have any interest in psychology, this book is an absolutely must read! If you do not read this book, you are missing something very important.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, Revealing,, February 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Beyond the Conscious Mind: Unlocking the Secrets of the Self (Hardcover)

This is a book that gives the final picture after you have thought so much about this issue. And explains so much else with it. I have some questions also; In one of the chapters the author says that 98% of the time the self module is not "on". My questions are: What decides if one of the modules is "on" or "off"? Is it some kind of "marker" telling that either the self module is on or off? What if the self module is not "on", is it still "running somewhere else"? By the way; is the author planning a new book about the modules role in dreaming? Thanks