There is no subject at the interface of law, psychiatry and medical ethics which is more controversial than psychosurgery. The divergent views of the treatment begin with its definition. The World Health Organisation1 and others2 define psychosurgery as the selective surgical removal or destruction of nerve pathways or normal brain tissue with a view to influencing behaviour. However, proponents of psychosurgery demur on the basis that the `modern' treatment is concerned predominantly with emotional illness, without any specific effect upon behaviour. (...) The alternative definition offered is `the surgical treatment of certain psychiatric illnesses by means of localised lesions placed in specific cerebral sites.3It is difficult entirely to accept this definition because, as examined below, scientific psychiatry is not yet in a position to directly treat psychiatric illness solely through surgical intervention. There is no reliable theoretical relationship between particular cerebral sites (which are normal and healthy) and an identifiable psychiatric illness or symptomatology. Given this state of psychiatric understanding, it is misleading to suggest fine distinctions between generalised alteration of behaviour or mood and treatment of an illness. Highly divergent practices and theories (relating to the multiplicity of conditions treated, surgical methods adopted and areas of the brain operated upon) further undermine exaggerated claims that psychosurgery can scientifically `treat' specific illness through precise surgical intervention. Nonetheless, contemporary psychosurgery does not contain quite the same `broadbrush' approach of its ancestors and it can lay some legitimate claim as an effective empirical treatment in narrowly limited circumstances. Major ethical problems still, however, arise and these will be discussed in this article. (shrink)

Were it not for its stratospheric price, this book should be unconditionally recommended to students of Indian philosophy. It is the most thorough and scholarly study of early Indian logic and epistemology to date, offering much more than its title promises. The author analyzes all the crucial questions in the history of early Indian philosophy, to the utmost detail, including the discussion of all previous significant literature on each specific subject. The author's sound knowledge of Western logic, however, often leads (...) him to overlook the differences between the prelogical qualities and mystic symbolism of early Indian thought, and Western logic. But, this does not detract much from the value of the book as a complete and clear translation of Indian thought into the language and conceptions of the Western philosopher.—L. O. G. (shrink)

In this compact essay, Hubbeling compares and evaluates the merits of a theistic, Christian conception of God with a pantheistic one. Both are defined rather broadly: the former as that of an active self-conscious being; the latter as the very facticity of the world. Hubbeling wants to show that the dynamic categories in the metaphysics of the "ego-structured" God-concept provide the more fertile ground for philosophical inquiry. His thesis is suggestive though the argument is inconclusive.—L. O.

A short and well balanced study of the early history and position of the lower castes of India, as seen in the code of Manu. Tiwari is to be commended not only on her clarity of expression and excellent diction—"avis rara" in Indian scholarship—but also on her broadness of vision concerning such a touchy question. The author's view is that "class-war" originated and maintained the Hindu class system; she discards race and ritual impurity as the prime causes of the caste (...) structures, but fails to present or refute all the evidence to the contrary. This book has little of interest for the student of philosophy, but, should be of interest to Indologists.—L. O. G. (shrink)

An attempt to demonstrate that value is an object for scientific investigation and manipulation. Gotshalk contends that an appropriate empirical methodology would disclose telic value patterns in each of the various "domains" of human experience and activity in much the same way that causal patterns are discernible in nature. The development of such a science would enable us to cope with our human environment on principles similar to those with which natural science handles our natural environment. The flavor of the (...) book is exhortative rather than argumentative.—L. O. (shrink)

A succinct presentation of the Pratyabhijñä school of Kashmir Shaivism, written by Ksemaraja, disciple of Abhinavagupta. In as much as the previous translation by K. F. Leidecker is inexact and out of print, this new translation by Mr. Singh is most welcome, especially as it is faithful to the original, written in correct and smooth English, and the translator himself is trained in the Pratyabhijñä. Although the translation is carefully annotated, and Mr. Singh avoids philological questions, the reader needs to (...) have previous knowledge of Indian Philosophy and Sanskrit to understand the book.—L. O. G. (shrink)

Abstract: This article outlines conflicting views in the philosophy of history concerning the possibility and desirability of using moral judgments. It examines the psychological evidence for the value of history in developing moral judgment, in particular stressing the process of identification and evidence for developmental schemes such as those of Piaget and Kohlberg. An analysis is made of the specific contributions made by particular methods of teaching history, particularly content?based and inquiry?based approaches.

At the present stage of the development of theological thought of a new sound acquires the marijolic conception of Catholicism. The theologically developed image of Virgin Mary, laid the foundation of marly, formed into a universal concept.

The activities of early Protestantism have been sufficiently researched, especially nowadays. But most of the works are mostly about his penetration into the Ukrainian land and adaptation to new socio-historical conditions. Unfortunately, the original base of early Protestantism, in particular Calvinism, has not been practically studied, though we have preserved two particularly noteworthy testimonies of Ukrainian Calvinists. One of them is the Gospel teachings that emerged in the sixteenth century. in Transcarpathia in the village of Nyagovo of the present Tyachiv (...) district. The monument is so unexplored that even the Calvinist content is expressed in the scientific literature. In this connection, we set ourselves the task of analyzing the content of this monument and bringing it to Calvinism, that is, to reformation. (shrink)