Elizabeth Schechter, "Self-Consciousness and Split Brains: The Mind's I" (Oxford UP, 2018)
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What is the split‑brain phenomenon and why does it matter?
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Hello and welcome to New Books and Philosophy, a podcast channel with the New Books Network. I'm Carrie Figor, Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Iowa. I'm co host of the channel along with Robert Talise, Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University. Together we bring you conversations with philosophers about their new books, drawing from a wide range of areas of contemporary philosophical inquiry. Today's interview is with Elizabeth Schechter, who is an assistant professor of philosophy at Washington University in St. Louis. Her new book, Self Consciousness and Split Brains, The Mind's Eye, is just out from Oxford University Press. Human brains have two hemispheres, whose major connection is the corpus callosum, a fiber tract that enables information to be shared between the hemispheres.
Split brain subjects are people whose corpus callosum has been surgically cut to alleviate epilepsy. This and similar operations or conditions yield an odd phenomenon in which the patient appears to be two agents. For example, in controlled experiments, they may only be conscious of stimuli shown to their right eye, to just the right eye, but when asked to draw the stimulus with the left hand, they will draw the stimulus shown to the shown just to their left eye. It is as if each hemisphere is its own self with its own eye and its own stream of consciousness. In her new book, Schechter argues that while split split brain subjects have have two minds, two subjective perspectives, and are two intentional agents, they nevertheless constitute one person.
So she denies the common principle one person, one mind. The book is a fascinating exploration of the neuroscience and psychology of split brains and their implications for our understanding of minds, selves and persons when the hemispheres are not disconnected. Let's turn to the interview. Hello, Elizabeth Schechter. Welcome to New Books in Philosophy.
Hi, thank you, Carrie. Thanks for inviting me here.
So I'm really uh looking forward to talking about your your new book, Self Consciousness and Split Brains. Um there's a lot of really interesting detail here, both the neuroscience and the psychology, the cognitive psychology. En cardio neuropsychology of split brain patients. Um and then of course the ultimate, you know, philosophical payoff of, you know, what does this have to tell us about our own selves and minds and persons? Um so be f before we get to the the nitty-gritty of the book, can you say a bit about, you know, how you came to philosophy and how you came to the writing of this book?
Oh yeah, sure. Um well I Did not major in philosophy as an undergraduate, but I took A few philosophy courses and I was also taking a lot of um cognitive science classes.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the split‑brain phenomenon and why does it matter?
0:00–9:25
2
How did Elizabeth Schechter become interested in philosophy and cognitive science?
9:25–18:48
3
What does the ‘unity puzzle’ propose about minds, persons, and brains?
18:48–26:37
4
How do split‑brain experiments reveal two separate streams of consciousness?
26:37–34:04
5
What are the observed behavioral and psychiatric effects of split‑brain surgery?
34:04–42:32
6
Why does Schechter argue that split‑brain subjects have two distinct thinkers?
42:32–49:50
7
How does the book reconcile two minds with a single person?
49:50–58:22
8
What future research directions does Schechter plan after this book?
58:22–1:05:18
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from New Books in Philosophy
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