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A review by evankasden
The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey into the Dark Side of the Brain by James Fallon
4.0
I expected this book to be more introspective and anecdotal than science, but it was definitely heavy on the science, which I did enjoy. I learned a lot about the science behind mental illness.
I’m not a big fan of the author as a person. He seems hypocritical at times, and despite saying he has cognitive empathy, he repeatedly says he’s fine with putting others he is close to in significant danger. I don’t care if he wants to do this, or if he could do this without feeling bad. I do care that he actively does this, and despite saying he cares about the species surviving, he seems to have no problem with killing people he enjoys spending time with.
Similarly, he states he wouldn’t let a kid starve to death in front of him, but that he would advocate for some kids starving to improve humanity. This seems to be pretty common, and I would have assumed he wouldn’t care about the kid in front of him. A lot of what he describes seems contradictory to me, and there’s enough of it that I question the author’s understanding more than mine. He’s the expert on himself, of course, but he seems pretty blind.
Still, I found his anecdotes and the neuroscience interesting. I know a psychopath who is a much better person than this author, so maybe that’s why I was a bit let down. The author states many times he just doesn’t care, and that’s clearly true. But for all he says he does care about the survival of the species and the betterment of humanity, I’m not seeing it. His actions don’t match his words.
Anyway, interesting read. Worth it, just don’t expect a reliable narrator.
I’m not a big fan of the author as a person. He seems hypocritical at times, and despite saying he has cognitive empathy, he repeatedly says he’s fine with putting others he is close to in significant danger. I don’t care if he wants to do this, or if he could do this without feeling bad. I do care that he actively does this, and despite saying he cares about the species surviving, he seems to have no problem with killing people he enjoys spending time with.
Similarly, he states he wouldn’t let a kid starve to death in front of him, but that he would advocate for some kids starving to improve humanity. This seems to be pretty common, and I would have assumed he wouldn’t care about the kid in front of him. A lot of what he describes seems contradictory to me, and there’s enough of it that I question the author’s understanding more than mine. He’s the expert on himself, of course, but he seems pretty blind.
Still, I found his anecdotes and the neuroscience interesting. I know a psychopath who is a much better person than this author, so maybe that’s why I was a bit let down. The author states many times he just doesn’t care, and that’s clearly true. But for all he says he does care about the survival of the species and the betterment of humanity, I’m not seeing it. His actions don’t match his words.
Anyway, interesting read. Worth it, just don’t expect a reliable narrator.