Demasio’s Precision… What next?

Antonio Damasio, by utilizing his book, Descartes’ Error, presents a forthright theory concerning human emotions, reason, and the human brain. Damasio illustrates his theory in the statement, "… feelings are a powerful influence on reason, that the brain systems required by the former are enmeshed in those needed by the latter, and that such specific systems are interwoven with those which regulate the body" (245). This theory may help shape the way mankind views the relationship between the mind and brain in our daily lives regarding the decision making process. It can also instigate new methods of treatment for certain types of ailments whether mental or physical. Though the idea that feelings and emotions play a pivotal role in reasoning is merely an educated guess on Damasio’s part, there is a relatively significant amount of evidence that is in favor of his thesis. After many tests performed on his own patients, namely Elliot, a patient suffering from frontal lobe damage, it was rather simple to make conclusions that suggested that certain parts of the brain controlled the emotions of humans, but when these sections [dealing with emotion] are damaged, it leads to a deterrence of the subject’s reasoning abilities. The most important question is what science and mankind can do with Damasio’s findings in order to develop more theories and make further investigations into the mysterious realm of the human brain.

Damasio’s hypothesis would probably mean nothing without the evidence he has found to support his theory. The main subject that is mentioned in Descartes’s Error is a patient named Elliot. Elliot had a tumor that was removed along with a part of his frontal lobe that was infected. After this part of his brain was removed, there were significant changes in his behavior, specifically his emotional well-being. The scientists (Damasio and his staff) conducted an experiment in which they showed patients a set of slides. Some of the slides were meant to instigate an emotional response, and thus, generate some type of skin conductance response. "The subjects without frontal lobe damage… generated abundant skin conductance responses to the disturbing pictures but not to the bland ones. On the contrary, the patients with frontal lobe damage failed to generate any skin conductance responses whatsoever" (209). The lack of emotion also led to changes in reasoning patterns. In an experiment they coined "the Gambling Experiment" subject were meant to choose which card decks to choose their cards from. There was a certain pattern that determined the rewards and punishments of the gamble. "Elliot and other frontally damaged patients… were still sensitive to punishment, although the effects of punishment did not seem to last for very long, probably because it was not connected with the formulation of predictors concerning future prospects" (217). Unlike the normal patients, their reasoning abilities seemed to allow them to be frequently punished. This is very adequate evidence proving that certain sections of the brain are in control of emotions, and it is these emotions that alter reasoning abilities. Damasio’s tests triggers an outcome, but now the meaning and importance of these results must be explored.

Descartes’ Error explores emotion, reason, and the brain in a new light. In the past, there have been fairly accepted views such as Descartes’ who "imagined thinking as an activity quite separate form the body, it does celebrate the separation of mind, the thinking ‘thing’ from the nonthinking body, that which has extension and mechanical parts" (248). Damasio presents a bold and cogent hypothesis that challenges some of the greatest thinkers of our time. Rather than separating the brain (a physical part of the body) from thoughts and images, he interlocks the two allowing for many important assumptions to be made. With Damasio’s hypothesis, it may affect the way the medical field approaches certain types of treatments. Since it is known that the brain has control over a person’s emotions, it may be more effective to treat their disease through mental and emotional means along with the physical cures rather than treating just the patient’s disease through the body. An applicable example is how many doctors have used laughter as a treatment to cure or slow down a disease (i.e. Patch Adams). This can also be turned around so that if a patient has psychological disorder, it may be beneficial to treat the illness with physical means along with the mental manipulation and cures. Certain types of medicine can alter chemical production within the brain, which in turn, has an effect upon the thoughts processed within the brain. There are products like this that presently exist within the pharmaceutical field. One example that Antonio Damasio calls attention to is the antidepressant, Prozac. This drug increases the serotonin level within the brain, which has an effect on a person’s violent tendencies. In addition to medical treatments, Damasio’s hypothesis should be valued with regard to the various types of influences it will have on the daily lives of every human. Now that it is understood that emotions have a great deal of control over reasoning abilities, people must try to incorporate their emotions and feelings into the decisions they make. For example, many will go through an interviewing process in order to be admitted into medical school. Before one of these interviews, people should consider their emotions and do their best to manipulate how they feel to a positive emotion. Medical school interviews include a numerous amount of ethical questions. If one is experiencing negative feelings, he may not be able to give a very accurate representation of his honest, personal [perhaps positive] view. The effects of how one’s emotions interact with his reasoning process play a fundamental role in the lives of many.

A fundamental role indeed, but to cease further investigation at the arrival of Damasio’s results would be unfavorable. Humans must determine what effect Descartes’ Error will have on society. Within society there are many spheres that involve administration of the mind. For example, the educational systems may be able to use Damasio’s ideas to mold the methods in which children learn and retain information. It may be advantageous to look into maintaining a certain type of ambiance (to activate a particular emotion) within the classroom to enhance students’ reasoning abilities. Furthermore, a constructive idea may be to train parents to shape individual methods for rearing children around Damasio’s hypothsis. Damasio’s testing may also lead to additional theories dealing with more parts of the brain. The brain is a convoluted tool mankind has taken for granted for an extensive time period. The time has come in which science can explore different parts of the brain and test other realms of mankind. Rather than limit the hypotheses to the frontal lobe and its effect on emotions and reasoning, different parts of the brain may be assessed to view the effects on logic, reflexes, or even spirituality.

There is no argument that Antonio Damasio has revolutionized the way humans are to understand the brain. He has found a substantial amount of evidence dictating what certain parts of the brain can do to a human being’s emotions, and what a person’s emotions can do to his thought process. The importance of his discoveries should be held in the highest regard and kindle an interest in exploration of the human mind that goes beyond what can be imagined. With his breakthrough of ideas on the brain, Antonio Damasio is worthy of being compared to the greatest thinkers of our time.