Philosophy and Memory Traces: Descartes to Connectionism [Hardcover]

John Sutton (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521591945 | ISBN-13: 978-0521591942 | Publication Date: March 13, 1998

Philosophy and Memory Traces defends two theories of autobiographical memory. One is a bewildering historical view of memories as dynamic patterns in fleeting animal spirits, nervous fluids that rummaged through the pores of brain and body. The other is new connectionism, in which memories are "stored" only superpositionally, and reconstructed rather than reproduced. John Sutton juxtaposes historical and contemporary debates to show that psychology can attend to culture, complexity, self, and history.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a somewhat unusual book. [Sutton's] discussion of historical materials is for the most part judicious and sensitive to context...this book does suggest a range of avenues for further research: the discussion of John Locke's theory of personal identity is especially stimulating." Bull. Hist. Med.

Book Description

Porous Memory defends two theories of autobiographical memory. One is a bewildering historical view of memories as dynamic patterns in fleeting animal spirits, nervous fluids which rummaged through the pores of brain and body. The other is new connectionism, in which memories are 'stored' only superpositionally, and reconstructed rather than reproduced. John Sutton juxtaposes historical and contemporary debates to show that psychology can attend to culture, complexity, self, and history.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 390 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (March 13, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521591945
• ISBN-13: 978-0521591942
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,792,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Selected Reviews, December 5, 2004

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J. Sutton - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Philosophy and Memory Traces: Descartes to Connectionism (Hardcover)

"a textbook example of how different periods in the history of theory construction can be meaningfully compared and contrasted"
- A.L. Wilkes, Journal of Early Modern History 5 (2001)

"it is full of historical and philosophical detail, much of it important and unusual ... I cannot do justice to the richness of the many discussions" - Alan Hausman, Archiv fur Geschichte der Philosophie (2001)

"John Sutton is a cognitive philosopher engaged in intense debate with other philosophers about memory and self, and this book is an historical brief for his side. ... The notes and references are superb. ... Sutton's ambitious thesis is well-served by his facility with primary and secondary sources in natural philosophy, history of science, cognitive science, and cognitive philosophy. He writes clearly, often gracefully, and the result is a tour de force. It may also be sui generis; at least, I have not encountered another contemporary philosophy or history text that attempts to give equal value to both perspectives. ... Sutton's arguments are brilliant" - Robert Martensen, Early Science and Medicine 5 (2000)

"Compelling ... relies on an intimate understanding of the current philosophy of science and history of memory and philosophy of mind. This is clearly a very important work [which] successfully ties in historical, scientific, philosophic, and social elements in the transition of memory theories." - William Clower, Journal of the History of the Neurosciences (2000)

"John Sutton's rich and absorbing book interweaves two related themes, ... an account of the history of the idea of memory traces, ... and a defence of a theory of memory which makes use of distributed models. ... Throughout, Sutton counters both explicitly and implicitly the idea that there is a sharp divide between philosophical and scientific issues. ... All those interested in the history and philosophy of memory should benefit from this work." - Paul Coates, British Journal for the History of Philosophy 8 (2000)

"John Sutton's book is a work of high scholarly attainment, spanning a wide range of topics requiring different kinds of academic expertise, an intellectual pleasure for historian, psychologist, and philosopher alike ... Sutton writes in a captivating style throughout the book, with flowery, yet remarkably regimented prose." Theo Meyering, Metascience 9 (2000)

"This is a remarkable book: elegantly written, impressive with regards to its scholarship and its attention to a wealth of relevant material (historical and contemporary), and excitingly innovative in its ideas about memory as the creative link between self and world." - Rosalyn Diprose, Australasian Journal of Philosophy 78 (2000)