Soul, butterfly, mythological nymph: psyche in philosophy and neuroscience

Arq Neuropsiquiatr. 2017 Mar;75(3):176-179. doi: 10.1590/0004-282X20170012.

Abstract

The term "psyche" and its derivatives - including "Psychology" and "Psychiatry" - are rooted in classical philosophy and in mythology. Over the centuries, psyche has been the subject of discourse and contemplation, and of fable; it has also come to signify, in entomology, the order of Lepidoptera. In the current surge of research on brain and mind, there is a gradual transition from the psyche (or the "soul") to the specified descriptors defined by the fields of Behavioral, Cognitive and Integrative Neuroscience.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Humans
  • Mythology*
  • Neuropsychology*
  • Neurosciences*
  • Philosophy*
  • Semantics*