The Body and the Self

The Body and the Self brings together recent work by philosophers and psychologists on the nature of self-consciousness, the nature of bodily awareness, and the relation between the two. The central problem addressed is How is our grasp of ourselves as one object among others underpinned by the ways in which we use and represent our bodies? The contributors take up such issues as How should we characterize the various distinctive ways we have of being in touch with our own bodies in sensation, proprioception, and action? How exactly does our grip on our bodies as objects connect with our ability to perceive the external environment, and with our ability to engage in various forms of social interaction? Can any of these ways of representing our bodies affect a bridge between body and self?

José Luis Bermúdez is a British Academy Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Philosophy at the University of Cambridge. Anthony Marcel is a Senior Scientist in the Applied Psychology Unit at the Medical Research Council in Cambridge. Naomi Eilan is a Senior Research Fellow at King's College, Cambridge University.