Steven Pinker: How the Mind Works
Brilliant book. “How the Mind Works” is a tour de force over many of the puzzling aspects of the human mind:
- Why can our eyes be fooled by optical illusions?
- Why would we evolve emotions?
- Why would we evolve behaviour that makes us unable to fully control ourselves, like rage?
The book puts forth theories for all these questions and more.
The best part of the book, however, is the style in which it is written. Steven Pinker is a master at keeping the text interesting.
The main value of the book is not that it deals with these specific issues, but that teaches the reader a framework that can be used to understand the human mind: Evolutionary Psychology.
Recommended.