From Library Journal
The process of recalling things, people, and events--using our memory--is something we do every day but think little about. Schacter (psychology, Harvard Univ.) and Scarry (English, Harvard Univ.), editors of this collection of conference papers, seek to zero in on this ubiquitous if ill-defined activity by examining it from a variety of perspectives. Working within the context of Harvard University's Initiative in Mind/Brain/Behavior, their interdisciplinary group of contributors approaches the subject from the perspective of the humanities as well as neurobiology, from psychiatry and literary analysis, through religious studies and economics. Chapters examine memory as a biological process, as consciousness, and as an aspect of personal history or autobiography; contributors attend to the distinctions between belief, as a conscious, qualifying notion, and memory, as a deeper more elusive process. The book's multidisciplinary approach makes for innovative insight into the subject; the writing and research is clear and well presented, accessible to the uninformed reader but still academically rigorous. Recommended for large public and academic libraries.
-David E. Valencia, King Cty. Lib. Sys., Federal Way WA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
The process of recalling things, people and events--using our memory--is something we do every day but think little about. Schacter and Scarry, editors of this collection of conference papers, seek to zero in on this ubiquitous, if ill-defined, activity by examining it from a variety of perspectives...The book's multidisciplinary approach makes for innovative insight into the subject; the writing and research is clear and well presented, accessible to the uninformed reader but still academically rigorous.
--David E. Valencia (
Library Journal )
The decidedly interdisciplinary anthology brings together researchers from neuroscience, cognitive psychology, literature and medicine to discuss the nature of memory and belief...Researchers present interesting results indicating that one's own memories of the past are strongly influenced by one's present beliefs, current experience and even nonconscious influences. The picture of memory presented throughout these essays is both fascinating and disquieting...It is uncomfortable to be told that we do not know our own minds and past experiences as well as we think we do, but it makes for captivating reading...An interesting and useful contribution to the growing body of research on memory, belief, and autobiography.
--James R. Beebe (
Metapsychology )
The eleven chapters, and a masterful summary by Damasio, present many facets of the problem, from the paranoid delusions of the schizophrenic to experimentally provoked errors in memory.
--Robert W. Doty (
The Quarterly Review of Biology )
