Abstract:

When pointing towards inanimate objects, chimpanzees use their right hand, whereas when pointing towards living creatures, they do it with their left. Such a striking difference can, to some extent, also be noticeable in humans: for grasping things, we mainly use our right hand, while exploration is instinctually done with the left hand. What does this have to say about the nature of truth, the hard problem of consciousness, or the existence of God? Quite a lot, according to Iain McGilchrist’s recent magnum opus, The Matter with Things: Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World.