Two Lessons on Animal and Man

This slim volume contains material from two lessons that French philosopher Gilbert Simondon prepared for psychology courses he was teaching in 1967. They interrogate what Jean-Yves Chateau identifies, in his introduction to the text, the problem of life as posed by psychology's twin concern for intelligence and instinct. These concepts are integral to psychology, but also to millennia old debates about humans and animals, morality and autonomy. Simondon traces their intellectual history. The first lesson focuses on ancient Greek philosophers and how they associated certain activities with intelligence or instinct, while the second focuses on theologians and early modern philosophers. Distributed in North America by the University of Minnesota Press. Annotation c2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)