The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802023061 ISBN 13: 9780802023063

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1976

At the heart of this book is the revolutionary idea that human consciousness did not begin far back in animal evolution. Rather, Jaynes presents consciousness as a learned process that evolved from an earlier hallucinatory mentality only three thousand years ago. The implications extend into every aspect if human life.

About the Author:

Julian Jaynes (1923-1997) achieved an almost cult-like reputation for this controversial book, which was his only published work.

Review:

"When Julian Jaynes . . . speculates that until late in the twentieth millennium b.c. men had no consciousness but were automatically obeying the voices of the gods, we are astounded but compelled to follow this remarkable thesis." -- John Updike The New Yorker