Ethical Wisdom

January 10, 2011
Matousek (Sex Death Enlightenment) makes a case for why human beings are inherently ethical creatures in a provocative book that suffers from uneven execution. Wired from birth with "mirror neurons" that function involuntarily, and cause us, for instance, to tear up when others cry: "Emotions, not reason," Matousek asserts, "are the bedrock of ethical life." Drawing on philosophy, neurological and psychiatric research, anthropology, pop psychology, and mysticism, he debunks the belief that organized religion is a necessary framework for an ethical sense, and demonstrates that moral behavior evolves out of a complex interaction between our built-in empathy for those we identify as like ourselves, and the way we respond (or don't respond) to the supposedly abstract suffering of those we deem as "other." In the hands of an Oliver Sacks, this braiding of the scientific, moral, and anecdotal could be revelatory; Matousek, however, repeatedly substitutes opinions and inferences for fact, sapping his argument's credibility and his reader's patience.

April 1, 2011

A bestselling memoirist tackles fundamental questions regarding good and evil and the impulses that guide human behavior and emotions.

O: The Oprah Magazine contributor Matousek (When You're Falling, Dive: Lessons in the Art of Living, 2008, etc.) explores a variety of anecdotal evidence and testimony from thinkers in diverse disciplines—psychology, philosophy, neuroscience, religion—in an attempt  to explain why people make certain moral choices. The narrative is largely parabolic with numerous stories that offer moral quandaries and often shocking human behaviors. Early on, the author draws on the research of neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran (The Tell-Tale Brain, 2010, etc.), who argues for the existence of mirror neurons, which enable us to show empathy toward others by partially feeling their emotions via a neurological correspondence or mirroring of another's actual feelings. Later, Matousek relates the Buddhist notion of "Hungry Ghosts" (i.e., people with an insatiable ego) to help explain phenomena like greed, envy and materialism in American society. In one compelling chapter, the author looks at the work of psychologist Erich Fromm and the notion of "group narcissism," whereby loyalty to a group can devolve into blind and dangerous "us-versus-them" prejudice. In another anecdote, he relates the story of a young child exhibiting psychopathic behavior like hanging a cat and taking delight in his mother's reaction. The author's straightforward and colloquial approach to complex ethical questions is refreshing, and the numerous parables are fascinating. However, Matousek makes frequent sweeping generalizations and other fallacies that become a major distraction. Ultimately, the idea of "what makes us good" deteriorates so much so that the more interesting question becomes "why are we evil?" The author begins the book with the premise that each human being is born with a "moral organ" that guides behavior. Though meant figuratively, it's a distracting non sequitur that leads him on a slippery slope of unwarranted assumptions and a host of generalizations.

An entertaining though logically dubious examination of the origins and manifestations of moral behavior.

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January 1, 2011

Matousek (contributing editor, O, The Oprah Magazine; Sex Death Enlightenment) presents a fast-paced account of what evolutionary biology, neurobiology, economics, and cognitive psychology teach us about morality. The psychologist Jonathan Haidt's moral foundations theory has especially influenced Matousek. In this theory, "our moral organ has five primary foundations": harm and care, justice and fairness, in-group loyalty, authority and respect, and purity and sacredness. Matousek discusses each of these, stressing the role of emotions in our moral responses. He maintains that mirror neurons, parts of the brain that fire both when we act and when a similar action is performed by others, provide a biological basis for sympathy. He does not push an ideological agenda but contends that unselfish people tend to be happier than egotists. He urges us to see the sacredness in everyday things. The book is enlivened by vivid anecdotes, e.g., of double murderer Tyrone Thompson, who showed no remorse. VERDICT Matousek appears uninterested in what philosophers have to say about morality and (in the galley under review) confuses John Dewey with the founder of the library classification system. Nevertheless, the book is an insightful and informative survey that will appeal to general readers looking for a guide to scientific research about morality.--David Gordon, Bowling Green State Univ., OH

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