The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World

A pioneering exploration of the differences between the brains right and left hemispheres and their effects on society, history, and cultureone of the few contemporary works deserving classic status (Nicholas Shakespeare, Times, UK)Persuasively argues that our society is suffering from the consequences of an overdominant left hemisphere losing touch with its natural regulative master the right. Brilliant and disturbing.Salley Vickers, a Guardian Best Book of the YearI know of no better exposition of the current state of functional brain neuroscience.W. F. Bynum, Times Literary SupplementWhy is the brain divided? The difference between right and left hemispheres has been puzzled over for centuries. Drawing upon a vast body of brain research, the renowned psychiatrist, author, and thinker Iain McGilchrist reveals that the difference between the two sides is profoundtwo whole, coherent, but incompatible ways of experiencing the world. The detailoriented left hemisphere prefers mechanisms to living things and is inclined to selfinterest, while the right hemisphere has greater breadth, flexibility, and generosity.In the second part of his book, McGilchrist takes the reader on a journey through the history of Western culture, illustrating the tension between these two worlds as revealed in the thought and belief of thinkers and artists from the ancient to the modern, from Aeschylus to Magritte. He ultimately argues that, despite its inferior grasp of reality, the left hemisphere is increasingly taking precedence in todays worldwith potentially disastrous consequences.