Matter and Memory is a book of cognitive philosophy by Henri Bergson which discusses the classic problem of how the human mind and its memories are related to the spirit.
Bergson uses the phenomena of memory to construct arguments in favor of the spirit's existence. The various types of memory, and how they are related to the physical world, are discussed. Bergson analyses how memories are formed, what bearing they have on the world, and how they ultimately come to constitute their possessor's innate spirit.
This book was originally written by Bergson in response to an essay by Théodule Ribot, who held that all memory could be traced back to the brain's nervous system. Thus, the essence of human memory could be reduced to mere matter, rather than containing a higher, spiritual element. Bergson fervently disagreed with this opinion, and strove to write this thesis as a counter to the notion that the spirit can be reduced to only molecular activity.
Today, Matter and Memory is valued less for its philosophical posits on the spirit, and more for its discussion of how memories are established and maintained by the human brain. Bergson's thoughts on this theme are based from quantified scientific observations, and were at the forefront of his field at the close of the 19th century. Several of Bergson's arguments on memory have been confirmed as valid by modern cognitive science, in particular his selectionist theories.
First released in 1896, Matter and Memory remains a classic book of cognitive philosophy, uniting the scientific study of the mind and its workings with the philosophical concept of the human spirit.
