Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0195147049, Paperback)

One of the standard thought experiments in philosophy involves a "congenital Crusoe," a human being growing up in complete isolation, like Robinson Crusoe before he meets Friday. In Friday's Footprint, psychiatrist Leslie Brothers argues that there is no Crusoe without Friday: we are evolved to be social animals, and our minds can only be said to function in a social context. "Just as gold's value derives not from its chemical composition but from public agreement, the essence of thought is not its isolated neural basis, but its social use." Brothers provides a thorough (though somewhat jargon-laden) tour of current research on the social functions of the brain. She has a particularly interesting discussion of psychoanalysis, which she uses as an example of how thought is molded by conversation. --Mary Ellen Curtin