In a book called “The Happiness Hypothesis”, Jonathan Haidt described the unconscious mind as an elephant and the conscious mind as an elephant rider or driver. I wonder if a similar metaphor is useful here. His book certainly spends some time talking about how we might control our emotions to our benefit, though I don’t know that it’s more useful in that regard than most other pop-psych-with-a-side-of-CBT offerings.
I don’t take it as a given that the problems of survival and reproduction are solved, though their context has certainly changed. I’ve not yet met anyone who could live forever if they so chose, or anyone who can reproduce without the help (with or without permission) of another person.
In a book called “The Happiness Hypothesis”, Jonathan Haidt described the unconscious mind as an elephant and the conscious mind as an elephant rider or driver. I wonder if a similar metaphor is useful here. His book certainly spends some time talking about how we might control our emotions to our benefit, though I don’t know that it’s more useful in that regard than most other pop-psych-with-a-side-of-CBT offerings.
I don’t take it as a given that the problems of survival and reproduction are solved, though their context has certainly changed. I’ve not yet met anyone who could live forever if they so chose, or anyone who can reproduce without the help (with or without permission) of another person.
http://dirtsimple.org/2007/09/it-doesn-belong-to-you.html