I am Not a Brain

Markus Gabriel was born in 1980 and studied in Heidelberg, Lisbon and New York. Since 2009 he has held the chair for Epistemology at the University of Bonn—and with this appointment he became Germany’s youngest philosophy professor.  He is also the director of the International Center for Philosophy in Bonn

"Challenging the lofty claims of many neuroscientists.... Markus Gabriel has written a wonderfully polemical work. Its clearly developed arguments and lively examples are highly convincing."—Die Welt"It is a rare gift to be able to philosophize from first principles in a way that is neither patronizingly derivative nor technically arcane and in a manner that is accessible to the general reader. But Gabriel possesses that gift in bucketloads."—Simon Critchley, New School for Social Research"Markus Gabriel is a speculative wunderkind."—Neue Zürcher Zeitüng"Gabriel's engaging, accessible and incisive introduction to the philosophy of mind tackles the deep problems raised by both classical thinkers and modern neuroscience. Bringing the zombies and homunculi of the philosophical debates together with the Daleks and Fargo, it is as illuminating as it is enjoyable."—Dr. Sacha Golob, King's College London"Nowadays, 'The Brain' has taken over all the attributes with which the Modernity endowed 'the Subject.' Against this travesty, Markus Gabriel makes subjectivity as such prominent again and, by so doing, maybe, helps us make better sense of the brain as well."—Jocelyn Benoist, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne"Gabriel shows up the flaws and contradictions in reductive theories of mind, based on natural science. His many-facetted argument, where the technical terms are explained in an engaging and available language, with frequent references to contemporary science fiction films and stories, culminates in a powerful vision of 21st-century humanism."—Charles Taylor, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, McGill University"Only 37, Gabriel is demonstrating that German philosophers can find a wide audience — without being merely slick or superficial."—Foreign Policy

• IntroductionMind and GeistElementary Particles and Conscious Organisms The Decade of the BrainCan the Mind Be Free in a Brain Scan?The Self as a USB-StickNeuromania and Darwinitis – The Example of FargoMind – Brain – IdeologyThe Cartography of Self-Interpretation I.  What is at Stake in the Philosophy of Mind?Mind in the Universe?In the Spirit of HegelThe Historical Animal on the Social StageWhy not Everything, but at least Something is Teleological II.  ConsciousnessI See Something That You Do Not See!Neuronal Thunderstorms and the Arena of ConsciousnessBuddha, the Snake and the Bat – AgainSurfing On the Wave of Neuro-KantianismNothing Is Beyond Our Experience – Or Is There?Faith, Love, Hope – Are They All Just Illusions?An Altruist is Lodged in Every EgoDavidson’s Dog and Derrida’s CatTasty ConsciousnessThe Intelligence of the Robot Vacuum CleanerStrange Days – The Noise of ConsciousnessWhat Mary Still Doesn’t KnowThe Discovery of the Universe in a MonasterySensations are Not Subtitles to a Chinese MovieGod’s-Eye View III. Self-ConsciousnessHow History Can Expand Our ConsciousnessMonads in the MillBio is Not Always Better than TechnoHow the Clown Attempted To Get Rid of OmnipotenceSelf-Consciousness in a Circle IV. Who or What Is This Thing We Call: The Self?The Reality of IllusionsPuberty-Reductionism and the Toilet TheorySelf is GodFichte: The Almost Forgotten Grandmaster of the SelfThe Three Pillars of the Science of KnowledgeIn the Human Being Nature Opens her Eyes and Sees that She Exists‘Let Daddy Take Care of this’: Freud and StrombergDrives Meet Hard FactsOedipus and the Milk Carton V.  FreedomCan I Will Not to Will What I Will?The Self is Not a One-Armed BanditWhy Cause and Reason are Not the Same Thing and What That Has to Do with Tomato SauceFriendly Smites Meanie and Defeats Metaphysical PessimismHuman Dignity is InviolableOn the Same Level as God or Nature?PS: There Are No SavagesMan is Not a Face Drawn in Sand NotesBibliographyIndex of ConceptsIndex of Names