Outlines Of The Hist Of Psycho PDF Download

"In the earliest times the "soul" was an object of interest from three points of view. One of these was the religious. It is clear that religious needs, even in their most primitive form, must lead to the development of ideas of a separate, invisible being--the soul. Another conception of the soul originates from the very primitive experience that a principle of activity is at work within the human body. So long as a man lives, and indeed only during this time, certain vital forces are active within him, which reveal themselves in perception and motion. These forces are identified with the soul. A third standpoint has always been present in the observations which every one must make on his own character and on that of his fellowmen. This observation of one's self and others' personality is psychognosis. The history of the attempts at such self knowledge began in ancient times and changed when scientific investigations too precedence. Since however these efforts have appeared only in recent times, and since we have chosen in the interest of historical objectivity to mark off our task at an earlier point, it will be impossible to trace this development further"--Introduction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).