Emotion

A Very Short Introduction

By: Dylan Evans

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

Was love invented by European poets in the Middle Ages, or is it part of human nature? Will winning the lottery really make you happy? Is it possible to build robots that have feelings?

In this Very Short Introduction audiobook, Dylan Evans explores these and many other intriguing questions in this guide to the latest thinking about the emotions. Drawing on a wide range of scientific research, from anthropology and psychology to neuroscience and artificial intelligence, Evans takes the listener on a fascinating journey into the human heart, discussing the evolution of emotions and their biological basis, the science of happiness, and the role that emotions play in memory and decision making. Greeted by critics as a pop science classic when it was first published in 2001, the book has now been thoroughly revised and updated to incorporate new developments in our understanding of emotions, including new sections addressing the neural basis of empathy and the emotional impact of films.

©2019 Dylan Evans (P)2021 Tantor

what i wanted.

sometimes, the authors of these books seem to believe that their mission to introduce you to the topic includes crapping on other fields of human inquiry. this one doesn't. and i appreciate that. (i'm lookin at you, Dreams A Very Short Introduction 😑)

Interesting but dated, and strays a bit.

This was interesting, and probably worth reading more than listening to in an audiobook.

Largely an overview of different scientific and philosophical perspectives on human emotion throughout history.

The author spends over 30 minutes talking about artificial intelligence, and given the publication date of this edition was 2019, it is badly in need of an update if he’s going to go down that path given recent advancements in AI.