The Brain & Culture: A Symbiotic Relationship – Dr Iain McGilchrist

All in Nature is interconnected: all processes are interactive. The brain and the world (which it exists to bring into being for us) are no exceptions to this. Our brains mould the world and the world moulds our brains. Given the capacity for each hemisphere to attend to the world differently, and therefore make some aspects of the world stand forward at the expense of others, different cultures may come to emphasise different ‘takes’ on the world. I will consider some ways in which this has worked itself out historically in the West, and whether seeing this can help us get a new perspective on what we see happening around us in the world today.

Dr McGilchrist is a Psychiatrist and Writer, who is committed to the idea that the mind and brain can be understood only by seeing them in the broadest possible context. He has published original research and contributed chapters to books on a wide range of subjects, as well as original articles in papers and journals, including the British Journal of Psychiatry, American Journal of Psychiatry, The Wall Street Journal, The Sunday Telegraph, and The Sunday Times. He has taken part in many radios and TV programmes, documentaries, and podcasts, among them dialogues with Jordan Peterson, David Fuller of Rebel Wisdom, and philosopher Tim Freke.