All primates except human beings have thick coats of body hair. This suggests the primate ancesto... more All primates except human beings have thick coats of body hair. This suggests the primate ancestors of human beings likewise had such body hair and that, for some evolutionary reason, lost their body hair. Various theories have been put forward but none is fully adequate. This article presents the "naked love theory." This theory locates the origin of human hairlessness in the ancestral mother-infant relationship. In this view, hairlessness is ultimately the adaptive consequence of bipedalism. Because of bipedalism, ancestral infants lost their prehensile feet and thus lost the ability to grasp the mother's fur with their feet, as do other primate infants. Early bipedal mothers were thus under pressure to carry the infant. Therefore infants survived only if mothers had a strong desire to hold them. Because of the pleasure of skin-to-skin contact, the desire to hold the infant would have been stronger in mothers possessing a hairless mutation that enabled them to give birth to hairless infants. Survival of these infants would have then been greater than that of hair-covered infants. The hairlessness that began to appear in this context of maternal selection was then reinforced by sexual selection in the male-female sexual relationship. This is because a hairless sexual partner would have enabled the hairless individual to recreate the pleasure of skin-to-skin contact in the mother-infant relationship. This theory then helps to explain the evolutionary origins of romantic love.
Preface J.Giles Introduction: Kierkegaard among the Temples of Kamakura J.Giles A Short History o... more Preface J.Giles Introduction: Kierkegaard among the Temples of Kamakura J.Giles A Short History of Kierkegaard's Reception in Japan K.Masugata Japanese Pure Land Buddhism and Kierkegaard H.Yamashita A Zen Understanding of Kierkegaard's Existential Thought E.Nishimura To Practise One Thing: Kierkegaard through the Eyes of Dogen J.Giles Aeterno Modo : The Expression of Integral Consciousness in Kierkegaard and Dogen I.Mills Truth, Paradox, and Silence: Hakuin and Kierkegaard A.Graham Living with Death: Kierkegaard and the Samurai A.Buben Kierkegaard and Nishida: Ways to the Non-Substanitial E.Hanaoka The Religious Thought of Nishida and Kierkegaard S.Tsukiyama Kobayashi's Spirit of Unselfishness and Kierkegaard's Faith M.Mizuta Mori and Kierkegaard: Experience and Existence M.Morita Otani: A Kierkegaardian Fellow of the Dead K.Masugata
What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the ba... more What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the basis of personal identity? The answer seems plain: the body is a physical object which, as long as it exists, is spatio-temporally continuous throughout the different moments of its existence. In consequence, myself of today can be said to be the same person as myself of twelve years ago so far as my body of today is spatio-temporally continuous with my body of twelve years ago. Exponents of this view are not, of course, denying that over time a person's body will or may undergo various changes; rather they are claiming that so long as these changes occur within a body which maintains a spatio-temporal continuity, then the identity of the person whose body it is will be ensured.
In the 1934 the Hungarian physician Meduna attempted to cure schizophrenia with a drug which indu... more In the 1934 the Hungarian physician Meduna attempted to cure schizophrenia with a drug which induced convulsions or seizures. The term "schizophrenia" is used to refer to either an acute or a chronic psychological condition which can take various forms. It is often characterized, however, as a persisting condition in which thinking processes are dismpted or might seem bizarre, in which hallucina tions, delusions, and an altered sense of self are experienced, work and social relationships break down, self:'care and personal hygiene tend to be neglected, and the person seems less and less interested in maintaining himself or herself in a way in which others feel appropriate. In some cases the person in this con dition can experience fits of laughter for what are deemed to be inappropriate reasons or even for no apparent reason. In other cases the person can show catatonic behaviour, that is, behaviour in which the person assumes a peculiar position, for no apparent reason, and remains in that position for hours or even days on end (Auerbach and Blatt, 1997; American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Why did Meduna think that causing convulsions in such persons could cure them? Meduna justified his treatment by claiming that since epileptic convul sions tend not to occur with persons with schizophrenia, such convulsions must act as a protection against schizophrenia (Meduna, 1937; 1985). That is, Meduna thought that epileptic-like convulsions and schizophrenia were biologically antag onistic. The problem, however, was that Meduna was wrong: epileptic convulsions can easily occur with schizophrenia and thus offer no protection against schizo phrenia (Rudorfer and Goodwin, 1993). Despite the falsity of Meduna's argument, in 1937 Cerletti and Bini, two Italian physicians, pursued Meduna's ideas by passing an electric current through the brain of the schizophrenic person in order to produce convulsions (Cerletti and Bini, 1938). It is worth noting that Cerletti and Bini's first subject was a vagrant who spoke "incomprehensible gibberish" and who was unable to give
Why do human beings have sexual desire? This is a question that has been answered in various ways... more Why do human beings have sexual desire? This is a question that has been answered in various ways by different scholars. Those taking a biological approach to human sexuality typically argue for a biological basis for sexual desire. They point to findings that are meant to show that sexual desire has its origins in specific biological processes and, consequently, that without these processes there would be no sexual desire. In other words, certain biological processes are necessary (though not sufficient) for the existence of sexual desire. In this paper I shall argue that such a biologically based view of human sexual desire is ill-founded and not supported by the data. This does not mean, however, that the biological processes in question have no relation to sexual desire, but only that their role is inessential and, consequently, that human sexual desire is not dependent in any fundamental sense on such biological processes. I will then offer a phenomenological account of the non-necessary relation these processes have to sexual desire. Before I approach this topic, however, it will be helpful to get clear about what is meant by the term "sexual desire". This is because there are several phenomena that are related to but nevertheless distinct from sexual desire and which, as a result, can be easily confused with sexual desire. These phenomena include sexual arousal and other physiological sexual processes like vaginal lubrication, erection of the penis, or the rapid muscular contractions of orgasm. If processes like these are not clearly distinguished from sexual desire, or mistakenly thought to be the essence of sexual desire, difficulties will appear. One can, for example, run the risk of thinking that because a biological process is essential for, say, sexual arousal or a physiological sexual event, it must consequently be essential for sexual desire. But what are the reasons for drawing a distinction between sexual desire and these other sexual phenomena? The answer is that any of these phenomena can occur in the absence of sexual desire. Thus, genital stimulation, for example, can lead to the physiological events of sexual arousal, vaginal lubrication, erection, or
British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 2011
the same time, such a focus has its limits. Rousseau notoriously insisted that all his works form... more the same time, such a focus has its limits. Rousseau notoriously insisted that all his works formed a system with a consistent message, and it would have been welcome to have seen how Cohen’s reading of Rousseau’s liberal commitments fares in light of the emphasis on self-cultivation and selfknowledge central to Rousseau’s literary and autobiographical works. This is a tall order for a short book, to be sure – though it should be said that Rousseau scholarship has already generated several short books aspiring to this synthetic, comprehensive perspective, including those of Robert Wokler, Tzvetan Todorov and David Gauthier. (Relatedly, even as Cohen notes that he has ‘not been very attentive to the more recent literature on Rousseau’ (6), a more sustained engagement with the works of other philosophers on Rousseau’s democratic theory would have been welcome.) A brief point might also be raised on style. Cohen clearly succeeds at his stated goal of providing a precise, clear analytic reading of Rousseau. Yet at times the analytical approach may serve us less well, and especially when it makes neater and cleaner distinctions than others have been able to make at some famously messy points. In this vein, some readers will pause before the claim that some of Rousseau’s competing attachments can be resolved via approaching him as ‘philosophically liberal, and sociologically communitarian’ (22), and the provocative suggestion that Rousseau’s hardline views are best regarded as rhetorical tropes ‘motivationally necessary’ for securing more minimal liberal ends (58). Such claims do much to bring into relief Rousseau’s liberal commitments, but at times may direct our attention away from Rousseau’s synthesis of conventionally liberal and conventionally anti-liberal positions. Yet to register such a reservation is only to say that work remains to be done on Rousseau’s liberalism. Any who intend to pursue such would do very well to engage carefully with this impressively precise book which deserves the attention of Rousseau specialists and theorists of political liberalism alike.
British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 2001
... reader. FROM INWARDNESS TO EMPTINESS: KIERKEGAARD AND YOGA¯ CA¯ RA BUDDHISM James Giles ... a... more ... reader. FROM INWARDNESS TO EMPTINESS: KIERKEGAARD AND YOGA¯ CA¯ RA BUDDHISM James Giles ... assumptions. This is especially true of the Maha¯ ya¯ na school known as Yoga¯ca¯ ra or Vijña¯nava¯da Buddhism. ...
A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that... more A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that should be subjected to scrutiny. For the history of writings on sexuality is swarming with moral and religious influences that have little to do with scientific data. The recent article by ...
In Kise and Ngyuen's (2011) Letter-to-the-Editor, entitled ''Adult Baby Syndrome a... more In Kise and Ngyuen's (2011) Letter-to-the-Editor, entitled ''Adult Baby Syndrome and Gender Identity Disorder,''the authors present a case study of an individual who seems to display both adult baby syndrome and gender identity disorder. They start off referring to the ...
Various scholars argue that sexual desire is socially constructed. There is, however, little agre... more Various scholars argue that sexual desire is socially constructed. There is, however, little agreement surrounding the nature of social constructionism. Vance contrasts social constructionism here with a cultural influence model and distinguishes between degrees of social ...
What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the ba... more What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the basis of personal identity? The answer seems plain: the body is a physical object which, as long as it exists, is spatio-temporally continuous throughout the different moments of its existence. ...
A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that... more A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that should be subjected to scrutiny. For the history of writings on sexuality is swarming with moral and religious influences that have little to do with scientific data. The recent article by ...
A further but related point that separates reductionism from the no-self theory is that since red... more A further but related point that separates reductionism from the no-self theory is that since reductionism seeks to give an account of personal identity -- a notion which has its roots firmly embedded in the soil of the strict or nonreductive theory (that is, the view that personal identity is ...
All primates except human beings have thick coats of body hair. This suggests the primate ancesto... more All primates except human beings have thick coats of body hair. This suggests the primate ancestors of human beings likewise had such body hair and that, for some evolutionary reason, lost their body hair. Various theories have been put forward but none is fully adequate. This article presents the "naked love theory." This theory locates the origin of human hairlessness in the ancestral mother-infant relationship. In this view, hairlessness is ultimately the adaptive consequence of bipedalism. Because of bipedalism, ancestral infants lost their prehensile feet and thus lost the ability to grasp the mother's fur with their feet, as do other primate infants. Early bipedal mothers were thus under pressure to carry the infant. Therefore infants survived only if mothers had a strong desire to hold them. Because of the pleasure of skin-to-skin contact, the desire to hold the infant would have been stronger in mothers possessing a hairless mutation that enabled them to give birth to hairless infants. Survival of these infants would have then been greater than that of hair-covered infants. The hairlessness that began to appear in this context of maternal selection was then reinforced by sexual selection in the male-female sexual relationship. This is because a hairless sexual partner would have enabled the hairless individual to recreate the pleasure of skin-to-skin contact in the mother-infant relationship. This theory then helps to explain the evolutionary origins of romantic love.
Preface J.Giles Introduction: Kierkegaard among the Temples of Kamakura J.Giles A Short History o... more Preface J.Giles Introduction: Kierkegaard among the Temples of Kamakura J.Giles A Short History of Kierkegaard's Reception in Japan K.Masugata Japanese Pure Land Buddhism and Kierkegaard H.Yamashita A Zen Understanding of Kierkegaard's Existential Thought E.Nishimura To Practise One Thing: Kierkegaard through the Eyes of Dogen J.Giles Aeterno Modo : The Expression of Integral Consciousness in Kierkegaard and Dogen I.Mills Truth, Paradox, and Silence: Hakuin and Kierkegaard A.Graham Living with Death: Kierkegaard and the Samurai A.Buben Kierkegaard and Nishida: Ways to the Non-Substanitial E.Hanaoka The Religious Thought of Nishida and Kierkegaard S.Tsukiyama Kobayashi's Spirit of Unselfishness and Kierkegaard's Faith M.Mizuta Mori and Kierkegaard: Experience and Existence M.Morita Otani: A Kierkegaardian Fellow of the Dead K.Masugata
What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the ba... more What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the basis of personal identity? The answer seems plain: the body is a physical object which, as long as it exists, is spatio-temporally continuous throughout the different moments of its existence. In consequence, myself of today can be said to be the same person as myself of twelve years ago so far as my body of today is spatio-temporally continuous with my body of twelve years ago. Exponents of this view are not, of course, denying that over time a person's body will or may undergo various changes; rather they are claiming that so long as these changes occur within a body which maintains a spatio-temporal continuity, then the identity of the person whose body it is will be ensured.
In the 1934 the Hungarian physician Meduna attempted to cure schizophrenia with a drug which indu... more In the 1934 the Hungarian physician Meduna attempted to cure schizophrenia with a drug which induced convulsions or seizures. The term "schizophrenia" is used to refer to either an acute or a chronic psychological condition which can take various forms. It is often characterized, however, as a persisting condition in which thinking processes are dismpted or might seem bizarre, in which hallucina tions, delusions, and an altered sense of self are experienced, work and social relationships break down, self:'care and personal hygiene tend to be neglected, and the person seems less and less interested in maintaining himself or herself in a way in which others feel appropriate. In some cases the person in this con dition can experience fits of laughter for what are deemed to be inappropriate reasons or even for no apparent reason. In other cases the person can show catatonic behaviour, that is, behaviour in which the person assumes a peculiar position, for no apparent reason, and remains in that position for hours or even days on end (Auerbach and Blatt, 1997; American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Why did Meduna think that causing convulsions in such persons could cure them? Meduna justified his treatment by claiming that since epileptic convul sions tend not to occur with persons with schizophrenia, such convulsions must act as a protection against schizophrenia (Meduna, 1937; 1985). That is, Meduna thought that epileptic-like convulsions and schizophrenia were biologically antag onistic. The problem, however, was that Meduna was wrong: epileptic convulsions can easily occur with schizophrenia and thus offer no protection against schizo phrenia (Rudorfer and Goodwin, 1993). Despite the falsity of Meduna's argument, in 1937 Cerletti and Bini, two Italian physicians, pursued Meduna's ideas by passing an electric current through the brain of the schizophrenic person in order to produce convulsions (Cerletti and Bini, 1938). It is worth noting that Cerletti and Bini's first subject was a vagrant who spoke "incomprehensible gibberish" and who was unable to give
Why do human beings have sexual desire? This is a question that has been answered in various ways... more Why do human beings have sexual desire? This is a question that has been answered in various ways by different scholars. Those taking a biological approach to human sexuality typically argue for a biological basis for sexual desire. They point to findings that are meant to show that sexual desire has its origins in specific biological processes and, consequently, that without these processes there would be no sexual desire. In other words, certain biological processes are necessary (though not sufficient) for the existence of sexual desire. In this paper I shall argue that such a biologically based view of human sexual desire is ill-founded and not supported by the data. This does not mean, however, that the biological processes in question have no relation to sexual desire, but only that their role is inessential and, consequently, that human sexual desire is not dependent in any fundamental sense on such biological processes. I will then offer a phenomenological account of the non-necessary relation these processes have to sexual desire. Before I approach this topic, however, it will be helpful to get clear about what is meant by the term "sexual desire". This is because there are several phenomena that are related to but nevertheless distinct from sexual desire and which, as a result, can be easily confused with sexual desire. These phenomena include sexual arousal and other physiological sexual processes like vaginal lubrication, erection of the penis, or the rapid muscular contractions of orgasm. If processes like these are not clearly distinguished from sexual desire, or mistakenly thought to be the essence of sexual desire, difficulties will appear. One can, for example, run the risk of thinking that because a biological process is essential for, say, sexual arousal or a physiological sexual event, it must consequently be essential for sexual desire. But what are the reasons for drawing a distinction between sexual desire and these other sexual phenomena? The answer is that any of these phenomena can occur in the absence of sexual desire. Thus, genital stimulation, for example, can lead to the physiological events of sexual arousal, vaginal lubrication, erection, or
British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 2011
the same time, such a focus has its limits. Rousseau notoriously insisted that all his works form... more the same time, such a focus has its limits. Rousseau notoriously insisted that all his works formed a system with a consistent message, and it would have been welcome to have seen how Cohen’s reading of Rousseau’s liberal commitments fares in light of the emphasis on self-cultivation and selfknowledge central to Rousseau’s literary and autobiographical works. This is a tall order for a short book, to be sure – though it should be said that Rousseau scholarship has already generated several short books aspiring to this synthetic, comprehensive perspective, including those of Robert Wokler, Tzvetan Todorov and David Gauthier. (Relatedly, even as Cohen notes that he has ‘not been very attentive to the more recent literature on Rousseau’ (6), a more sustained engagement with the works of other philosophers on Rousseau’s democratic theory would have been welcome.) A brief point might also be raised on style. Cohen clearly succeeds at his stated goal of providing a precise, clear analytic reading of Rousseau. Yet at times the analytical approach may serve us less well, and especially when it makes neater and cleaner distinctions than others have been able to make at some famously messy points. In this vein, some readers will pause before the claim that some of Rousseau’s competing attachments can be resolved via approaching him as ‘philosophically liberal, and sociologically communitarian’ (22), and the provocative suggestion that Rousseau’s hardline views are best regarded as rhetorical tropes ‘motivationally necessary’ for securing more minimal liberal ends (58). Such claims do much to bring into relief Rousseau’s liberal commitments, but at times may direct our attention away from Rousseau’s synthesis of conventionally liberal and conventionally anti-liberal positions. Yet to register such a reservation is only to say that work remains to be done on Rousseau’s liberalism. Any who intend to pursue such would do very well to engage carefully with this impressively precise book which deserves the attention of Rousseau specialists and theorists of political liberalism alike.
British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 2001
... reader. FROM INWARDNESS TO EMPTINESS: KIERKEGAARD AND YOGA¯ CA¯ RA BUDDHISM James Giles ... a... more ... reader. FROM INWARDNESS TO EMPTINESS: KIERKEGAARD AND YOGA¯ CA¯ RA BUDDHISM James Giles ... assumptions. This is especially true of the Maha¯ ya¯ na school known as Yoga¯ca¯ ra or Vijña¯nava¯da Buddhism. ...
A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that... more A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that should be subjected to scrutiny. For the history of writings on sexuality is swarming with moral and religious influences that have little to do with scientific data. The recent article by ...
In Kise and Ngyuen's (2011) Letter-to-the-Editor, entitled ''Adult Baby Syndrome a... more In Kise and Ngyuen's (2011) Letter-to-the-Editor, entitled ''Adult Baby Syndrome and Gender Identity Disorder,''the authors present a case study of an individual who seems to display both adult baby syndrome and gender identity disorder. They start off referring to the ...
Various scholars argue that sexual desire is socially constructed. There is, however, little agre... more Various scholars argue that sexual desire is socially constructed. There is, however, little agreement surrounding the nature of social constructionism. Vance contrasts social constructionism here with a cultural influence model and distinguishes between degrees of social ...
What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the ba... more What is it about having a body that might dispose us to think it a plausible candidate for the basis of personal identity? The answer seems plain: the body is a physical object which, as long as it exists, is spatio-temporally continuous throughout the different moments of its existence. ...
A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that... more A study of sexuality whose conclusions support conservative moral or religious values is one that should be subjected to scrutiny. For the history of writings on sexuality is swarming with moral and religious influences that have little to do with scientific data. The recent article by ...
A further but related point that separates reductionism from the no-self theory is that since red... more A further but related point that separates reductionism from the no-self theory is that since reductionism seeks to give an account of personal identity -- a notion which has its roots firmly embedded in the soil of the strict or nonreductive theory (that is, the view that personal identity is ...
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