The Sciences of the Soul – The Early Modern Origins of Psychology

“Firm scholarly conviction has it that psychology began as a scientific discipline only in the last part of the nineteenth century. Fernando Vidal thoroughly overturns that assumption in his compelling historical reconstruction of the development of psychology from the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries. He shows how the concept of soul, initially caught in scholastic rationalism, underwent an empirical transformation from the form of the body to the activities of the mind, a mind whose intense thought had been compared to ‘a ligature applied to all of the nerves.’ By contrast, Vidal’s work—linguistically adroit, amazingly comprehensive, and scholarly satisfying—releases the nervous fluids to invigorate the mind of the reader. No other history comes close to his exquisite accomplishment.” -- Robert J. Richards, University of Chicago
“This is a very impressive book, a work of high and original scholarship. Vidal follows the history of the concept of ‘psychologia’ from the sixteenth century and argues that even without there being already a ‘discipline,’ one can talk of a sound psychological thinking from that time on. Vidal demonstrates how key ideas of eighteenth-century ‘psychology’—the concept of the esprit humain; the connections between anthropology, psychology, and moral sciences; and the notion of perfectibility—found their beginnings in the sixteenth century. The Sciences of the Soul will be the standard reference work on early modern ‘psychology’ for specialists in psychology, anthropology, philosophy, and the history of science.” -- Martin Mulsow, University of Erfurt
“[A] highly significant contribution to the early history of psychology. It will be indispensable for any further study of the origins of modern psychology.” -- Jörgen L. Pind, University of Iceland * British Journal for the History of Science *
“[Vidal] draws a compelling picture of psychology’s shift from philosophy and religion to science. . . . Recommended.”
-- B. C. Beins, Ithaca College * Choice *
“The Sciences of the Soul is clearly the product of a substantial period of sustained research. It will set the framework for research in the history of psychology in the period from 1600 to 1850 for many years to come and will also entail changes in the usual discussion of the ‘origin’ of psychology as a discipline.” -- Gary Hatfield, author of Perception & Cognition: Essays in the Philosophy of Psychology
"Highly informative and well-documented. . . . A great book, which has the merit of reshaping completely the historical framework within which the early modern origins of psychology must be understood." -- Paul J. J. M. Bakker, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands. * Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences *
"Ambitious, erudite, and stimulating." -- Michael Edwards * Social History of Medicine *
"It brings to light a lost continent of literature that has yet to make its appearance in the standard textbooks on the history of psychology. It also provides us with the missing link between  Aristotle’s work on the soul and the modern discipline of psychology that usually considers itself to be a science." -- Adrian Brock * Centaurus *
"A much more nuanced and textured view of the eighteenth-century sciences of mind than has hitherto been available." -- L. S. Jacyna * Annals of Science *