How Pleasure Works : The New Science of Why We Like What We Like

Bloom, Paul

ISBN 10: 1847921434 / ISBN 13: 9781847921437

Published by Random House Children's Books, 2010

About this Item

Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects.

Seller Inventory # GRP67632810

Bibliographic Details

• Title: How Pleasure Works : The New Science of Why We Like What We Like
• Publisher: Random House Children's Books
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1847921434
• ISBN 13: 9781847921437
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st.
• Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

In How Pleasure Works, the internationally acclaimed psychologist Paul Bloom explores one of the most fascinating and fundamental engines of human behaviour.

We are natural-born essentialists - when it comes to pleasure, nothing is ever merely skin-deep. We are attracted, whether we know it or not, to the hidden aspects of things and people. Some teenagers enjoy cutting themselves with razors; some men pay good money to be spanked by prostitutes. The average Briton spends over a day a week watching television. The thought of sex with a virgin is intensely arousing to many men. Artwork can sell for millions of pounds. Food and alcohol are so compelling that they can come to dominate one's life. Young children enjoy playing with imaginary friends and can be comforted by security blankets. People slow their cars to look at gory accidents and go to sentimental movies that make them cry.

In this revealing and witty account, Paul Bloom examines the science behind these curious desires, attractions and tastes, covering everything from the animal instincts of sex and food to the uniquely human taste for art, music and stories. Drawing on insights from child development, philosophy, neuroscience and behavioural economics, How Pleasure Works shows how certain universal habits of the human mind explain what we like and why we like it.

About the Author

Paul Bloom is Professor of Psychology at Yale University. He is an internationally recognised expert on the psychology of language, social reasoning, morality and art. His previous books include Just Babies and How Pleasure Works, and he has written for numerous publications, including the New York Times, New Yorker and the Guardian. Bloom has won several awards for his research, articles and teaching, and his ‘Introduction to Psychology’ class was one of seven selected by Yale to be made available worldwide. His TED talks have been viewed 2.8 million times.