Phrenology Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Papers

PhrenologyJoseph Conrads Heart of Darkness is primarily a novel about a mans trip to the African Congo and the horrors he encounters period there. However Conrads novel is also a story of its prison term and therefore makes mention of the theories held when it was written. Included in these compositions is that of phrenology and its relatives, mentioned clearly when the doctor examining Marlow asks, may I flier your head? and the doctor then produces a thing like calipers and gets the dimensions ass and front and every way... (p. 13). The following will provide a commentary of Phrenology and its implications.A pseudo-science developed by Austrian physician Franz Joseph Gall in the early 1800s, Phrenology is in its most basic form the study of the morphology of the human skull and its relation to human character. Galls doctrine of Phrenology (www.134.184.33.110/phreno/) is establish upon five key principles, which were first bring ined in his work The Anatomy and Physiology of the awkward System in General, and of the Brain in Particular. First, it is understood that mans moral and intellectual faculties are innate (Sabattini, R) and that their expression depends on how the intellect is organized. Secondly, he proposed that the brain is the organ responsible for all inclinations, emotions and abilities. Thirdly he stated that the brain is composed of many different organs (Sabattini, R.) with all(prenominal) one being responsible for a certain human function. He also proposed that the size of these organs is at a time related to the amount of their front line and use in particularized pers ons. And finally, he suggested that the external morphology of the skull directly expresses the internal structure of the brain and that the relative ... ...While Gall was haywire in theorizing that the external skull reflects the personality and tendencies of an individual, he was surprisingly correct and in fact pioneered the idea that specific human function s and emotions are related to specific regions of the brain. His way of coming to this conclusion was scientifically incorrect but the implications of this idea helped modern science discover the idea of cerebral localization that is present today.Sourceshttp//pages.britishlibrary.net/phrenology A comprehensive range which includes phrenology charts, photographs of key figures in the development of phrenology as well as a thorough overview of the science.www.epub.org.br/cm/n01/frenolog/frenologia.com A site designed by Dr. Renato M.E. Sabatini which gives a basic overview of the science and provides wonderful relate to other sites on phrenology.