Matter and Memory

Reprint of 1911 English Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Matter and Memory is one of the four main works by the French philosopher Henri Bergson (1859-1941). Its subtitle is "Essay on the relation of body and spirit", and the book presents an analysis of the classical philosophical problems concerning this relation. Within that framework the analysis of memory serves the purpose of clarifying the problem. Matter and Memory was written in reaction to the book The Maladies of Memory by Théodule Ribot, that appeared in 1881. Ribot claimed that the findings of brain science proved that memory is lodged within a particular part of the nervous system; localized within the brain and thus being of a material nature. Bergson was opposed to this reduction of spirit to matter. Defending a clear anti-reductionist position, he considered memory to be of a deeply spiritual nature; the brain serving the need of orienting present action by inserting relevant memories.