A U.K. mental health consultant and clinical director with a background in literature, McGilchrist attempts to synthesize his two areas of expertise, arguing that the "divided and asymmetrical nature" of the human brain is reflected in the history of Western culture. Part I, The Divided Brain, lays the groundwork for his thesis, examining two lobes' significantly different features (structure, sensitivity to hormones, etc.) and separate functions (the left hemisphere is concerned with "what," the right with "how"). He suggests that music, "ultimately... the communication of emotion," is the "ancestor of language," arising largely in the right hemisphere while "the culture of the written word tends inevitably toward the predominantly left hemisphere." More controversially, McGilchrist argues that "there is no such thing as the brain" as such, only the brain as we perceive it; this leads him to conclude that different periods of Western civilization (from the Homeric epoch to the present), one or the other hemisphere has predominated, defining "consistent ways of being that persist" through time. This densely argued book is aimed at an academic crowd, is notable for its sweep but a stretch in terms of a uniting thesis.
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Incorporating medicine, literature, cultural studies, philosophy, and critical theory, McGilchrist, a London psychiatrist with an interest in brain research, presents an interdisciplinary perspective on the brain and the rise of Western civilization. Writing in a scholarly yet engaging, approachable, and humorous tone, he flows between anatomical descriptions of the brain and the critical theory and philosophies of Heidegger, Descartes, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein, Erasmus, and others. His major thesis is that the essential differences between the right and left hemispheres of the brain—with the right ("the Master") attending to the "Other" and one's relationship to the "Other," and the left ("the Emissary") creating a self-directed, self-contained world disconnected from the "Other"—have been instrumental in shaping our culture. He argues that we desperately need to begin to engage the right hemisphere's attunement to broader relationships, capacity for emotion, and ability to empathize if we want to avoid forfeiting the left-brain-oriented civilization we have created. VERDICT With 57 pages of notes and a 67-page bibliography, McGilchrist's dense tome may intimidate some readers, but his fascinating ideas are sure to attract academics and cultural critics.—Candice Kail, Columbia Univ. Libs., New York

One of the few contemporary works deserving classic status.”—Nicholas Shakespeare, Times (UK)

“Persuasively argues that our society is suffering from the consequences of an over-dominant left hemisphere losing touch with its natural regulative ‘master’ the right. Brilliant and disturbing.”—Salley Vickers, a Guardian “Best Book of the Year”

“A landmark. . . . It tells a story you need to hear, of where we live now.”—Bryan Appleyard, Sunday Times

“McGilchrist describes broad [intellectual] movements and famous figures as if they were battles and soldiers in a 2,500-year war between the brain’s hemispheres. . . . A scintillating intelligence is at work.”—The Economist

“A veritable tour de force, gradually and skilfully revealed. I know of no better exposition of the current state of functional brain neuroscience.”—W. F. Bynum, Times Literary Supplement

“Clear, penetrating, lively, thorough and fascinating. . . . I couldn’t put it down.”—Mary Midgley, The Guardian

“A seminal book.”—Ervin László, Huffington Post

“A fascinating book. . . . [McGilchrist] is a subtle and clever thinker, and unusually qualified to range with such authority over so many different domains of knowledge.”—Harry Eyres, Financial Times

Winner of the Scientific and Medical Network Book Prize 2009

Shortlisted for the Bristol Festival of Ideas Book Prize 2010

Longlisted for the Royal Society Book Prize 2010

“A profound examination.”—Philip Pullman

“Iain McGilchrist’s ideas about human capabilities are among the most provocative I’ve encountered—and I mean provocative in a positive sense.”—Howard Gardner

“A dazzling masterpiece . . . comprehensive and profound.”—Norman Doidge

“A marvellous and highly original synthesis of ideas on how the division of labour between the two brain hemispheres can provide key insights into human nature.”—V. S. Ramachandran

“Unbelievably rich. . . . Of absolutely crucial cultural and intellectual importance.”—Louis Sass

"That a book can lead me to question myself is praise indeed—I can think of no higher recommendation. Like any really interesting book, it is to be valued more for this than for any answers it gives."—Felix Dux, Parabola

“In his fascinating, groundbreaking, relentlessly researched, and eloquently written work, Iain McGilchrist, a consultant psychiatrist as well as professor of English—one wants to say a 'scientist' as well as an 'artist'—challenges this misconception. The difference between the hemispheres, McGilchrist argues, is not in what they do, but in how they do it. And it’s a difference that makes all the difference.”—Gary Lachman, Los Angeles Times

"This insightful, erudite and thought-provoking examination of the brain's hemispheres can change how you see (or think you see) the world."--PopMatters

Named one of the best books of 2010 by The Guardian

"To call Iain McGilchrist's The Master and His Emissary. . . an account of brain hemispheres is to woefully misrepresent its range. McGilchrist. . . persuasively argues that our society is suffering from the consequences of an over-dominant left hemisphere losing touch with its natural regulative 'master,' the right."-- Salley Vicker, The Guardian

“Hugely ambitious.”--Jonah Lehrer, Bookforum

‘Though neurologists may well not welcome it because it asks them new questions, the rest of us will surely find it splendidly thought-provoking. And I do have to say that, fat though it is, I couldn’t put it down.’ — The London Review of Books

"At last! A book on neuroscience that is a thrilling read, philosophically astute and with wonderful science."--Mark Vernon, Philosophy and Life blog

"Absolutely fascinating."--Jessa Crispin, Editor of Bookslut.com

"It is no exaggeration to say that this quite remarkable book will radically change the way you understand the world and yourself. . . . It is a genuine tour de force, a monumental achievement."--David Lorimer, Scientific and Medical Network Review

"A beautifully written, erudite, fascinating, and adventurous book. It goes from the microstructure of the brain to great epochs of Western civilisation, confidently and readably. One turns its five hundred pages . . . as if it were an adventure story." — A. C. Grayling,  Literary Review

"This is a very remarkable book. . . McGilchrist, who is both an experienced psychiatrist and a shrewd philosopher, looks at the relation between our two brain-hemispheres in a new light, not just as an interesting neurological problem but as a crucial shaping factor in our culture. . . splendidly thought-provoking. . . . I couldn’t put it down."--Mary Midgley, The Guardian

"A landmark new book. . . It tells a story you need to hear, of where we live now."— Bryan Appleyard, The Sunday Times

"McGilchrist describes broad [intellectual] movements and famous figures as if they were battles and soldiers in a 2,500-year war between the brain’s hemispheres. . . A scintillating intelligence is at work. . ." - Economist

That a book can lead me to question myself is praise indeed—I can think of no higher recommendation. Like any really interesting book, it is to be valued more for this than for any answers it gives.—Felix Dux, Parabola

— Felix Dux

In his fascinating, groundbreaking, relentlessly researched, and eloquently written work, Iain McGilchrist, a consultant psychiatrist as well as professor of English—one wants to say a 'scientist' as well as an 'artist—challenges this misconception. The difference between the hemispheres, McGilchrist argues, is not in what they do, but in how they do it. And it’s a difference that makes all the difference.—Gary Lachman, Los Angeles Times

— Gary Lachman

Named one of the best books of 2010 by The Guardian
— Best Books of 2010

Hugely ambitious.—Jonah Lehrer, Bookforum

— Jonah Lehrer

At last! A book on neuroscience that is a thrilling read, philosophically astute and with wonderful science.—Mark Vernon, Philosophy and Life blog

— Mark Vernon

"Absolutely fascinating.—Jessa Crispin, Editor of Bookslut.com

— Jessa Crispin

It is no exaggeration to say that this quite remarkable book will radically change the way you understand the world and yourself. . . . It is a genuine tour de force, a monumental achievement.—David Lorimer, Scientific and Medical Network Review

— David Lorimer

A beautifully written, erudite, fascinating, and adventurous book. It goes from the microstructure of the brain to great epochs of Western civilisation, confidently and readably. One turns its five hundred pages . . . as if it were an adventure story.— A. C. Grayling,  Literary Review

— A.C. Grayling

To call Iain McGilchrist's The Master and His Emissary. . . an account of brain hemispheres is to woefully misrepresent its range. McGilchrist. . . persuasively argues that our society is suffering from the consequences of an over-dominant left hemisphere losing touch with its natural regulative 'master,' the right.— Salley Vicker, The Guardian

— Salley Vicker

A landmark new book. . . It tells a story you need to hear, of where we live now.— Bryan Appleyard, The Sunday Times

— Bryan Appleyard

"A giant in his vital field shows convincingly that the degeneracy of the West springs from our failure to manage the binary division of our brains." — Book of the Year choice, David Cox, Evening Standard

— David Cox