Neuroesthetics, Love and Literature

Finally got around to retyping my notes from the Semir Zeki and A S Byatt's Lecture at University of Bristol a few weeks ago.
Lost my notes twice already, thank you very little safari, third times a charm.

Not ideal, but I am going to organize my notes just with bullets and indentations.

A lot of the notes are very simple/obvious. There was soo much more covered, the main goal of my notes was just to trigger my memory about everything discussed since I couldn't is all down at the time.

Regular type represents notes from the lecture,
Italics represent my personal thoughts and reactions at the time the topics were discussed.

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NOTES


• The potential for reward is in a sense more fulfilling than the actual reward in contributing to happiness

• The anticipation is better than the actual thing

• Transgression of the forbidden, heightens the pleasure, or potential for pleasure

• Freud pinpoints love as the only time that a person goes out of his narcissistic state

•Is love a disease?

- Zeki argues 'yes' in the sense that if you were to go to a hospital to take the reading of your bodily functions and levels you would find chemicals such as serotonin and others that differ from the normal level

- Comparison of love and obsessive compulsive disorder

• Can neuroscience ever explain fully the importance of the metaphor?

• Why is it so important to us that one thing must represent another?

- Art usually seeks to express with metaphors, therefore will neuroscience ever be able to fully explain art

- Zeki never fully argues whether neuroscience will be able to or not

• Zeki speaks of the incapacity of the human brain to fully realize the concepts behind a work of art, if all the metaphors were completely realized, it would destroy the art

(what about the artist? Are they unconscious of the metaphors they are creating? Can they not fully be realized even by him due to his own lack of knowledge of all human nature and instinct? Or is the artist aware, but because meaning may be different between persons, is it that reason it can never be fully realized by anyone other than the person that created it? Is this discussed further in his book?)

• Zeki wonders if you can ever be fully satisfied with a metaphor?
(Possibly because it is always going to be a one-step removed indirect means?)

• The task of art can be so great at times, to create a single metaphot for what is to be expressed

-i.e. artist (name?) wanted to make a painting to represent all of the women he loved but could never have

• Zeki said the only way to have a successful single metaphor is to freeze an experience and not allow it to change or develop
(not fully sure what that means if there is an example of it or if it is only theoretical ideal)

• In mothers, passive activity in their brain when they look at their child (baby) is the same as lovers looking at each-other

- Except hypothalamus is not active (involved with sex)
- Both follow same basic pattern of love in the brain

• Cognitive thinking triggering physical response question asked by audience, such as getting butterflies when you see your lover. Is there are difference between the sexes?

- Seki hasn't seen large difference between male and female brain differences, hasn't seen any convincing evidence that there is a difference

- Male behavior in falling in love is very similar to female, possibly not as complex.

• Audience question about if animals experience love and happiness and attachment in the same was as people do

- Voles-> Neurochemically become very attached to each-other, become suicidal if partner is removed, also happens with monkeys

- Dogs-> Attach themselves obsessively and almost jealously to a particular person, just as people may to each-other

- Animals do have memory and desire, only problem for them is they do not have language to communicate it with
(Debatable? What about whales/dolphins communication with each-other, birds, etc etc?)

• Zeki wonders if even our language is adequate for fully expressing emotions such as love

- A S Byatt argues our language is adequate, while Zeki is not convinced, why then are their some emotions such as love, or powerful visuals experience, etc that are so strong yet intangible so they cannot be described verbally?

• Zeki does not believe in paternal love (audience looked shocked).

He beleieve that fathers see their children as a product of themselves so they have a more selfish/narcissitic love compared to maternal love, which is more genuine.

• Romantic love VS Maternal love

- Both are preparing for agressive behavior,
- Both follow almost same basic brain pattern

- Zeki proposed a 3 year max on passionate love

- Audience member tries to convince him citing Shakespear's Antony and Cleopatra, Zeki is not convinced

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(^A S Byatt on left, Semir Zeki on right)
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