A story of the mind is a story of what makes us human, one informed by the best science of the day and by a humanistic understanding of the contingencies of life and history. What is the role of storytelling in this endeavour? Is there a connection between the emergence of both spoken and written language, and the development of the mind? What sort of cultural instrument is literature? And what cognitive faculties does the use of literature employ, and empower? The purpose of this workshop is to explore the place of language, literacy and narrative in human culture, and the role of story-telling about oneself and others.

The event will be held in room 349 Senate House, and will be followed by a wine reception.

Speakers

Sarah Churchwell (London)

Greg Currie (York)

Charles Fernyhough (Durham and Wellcome Collection London)

Laurie Maguire (Oxford)

Sophie Scott (UCL)

Thomas Scott-Phillips (Durham)

The event will be introduced by Sir Colin Blakemore (London).

This event is organized by the team of The Human Mind Project. For further information, please write to info@humanmind.ac.uk