Human Experience: Philosophy, Neurosis, and the Element… (2024)

This book, despite its slimness, is a great big hunk of deepness.

The author brilliantly synthesizes existentialist phenomenology (drawing mainly from Heidegger in its emphasis on the fundamentally interpretative nature of human life, as well as Merleau-Ponty with regards to the inescapable ontology of our embodiment) with Hegel (in its central thesis of conflict being crucial for development) as well as Freud, the book being an examination of human neurosis after all.

The author, showing a clear phenomenological approach, bypasses the 'positivistic' conceptualization of personhood and thus of the psyche and the neurotic problems that affect it. Instead, the author argues, neurosis is fundamental to the human condition itself, an early construction of identity based on our initial introduction to intersubjectivity, which guarantees our entry into the social world, which is in fact, our world simpliciter. Neurosis, the conflict between two interpretations of reality, is simply how we function as embodied, interpretative beings.

This does not mean that neurosis is not a problem, however ; when we claim to want something, but we are in fact compelled to do the opposite, we are puzzled and frustrated. The true problem, however, is that we are simply unaware of our habitual way of being in the world compels us towards a series of actions that are at odds with what we actually wish to do with our lives.

Here, the author brilliantly re-conceptualizes the Aristotelian dictum, 'Know thyself' as a modern panacea for neurotic imbalance. Philosophy is in fact a self-conscious educative process, by which our unconscious habituation to interpersonal reality is brought into explicit view, for our conscious deliberation.

Of course, this is simply the main thesis, and my own main take-away ; but there is a wealth of insight in this slim tome, and I would recommend it without reservation for those wondering why they keep making the same mistakes over and over again, for those who feel 'stuck' in some way, and finally, for those who are simply interested in phenomenology, philosophy, psychology, and general human flourishing.

A fairly good book, the first part of Human Experience contains a phenomenological discription of what it is to exist and have a personal identity. Russon, following much of continental philosophy, argues that our identity is caught up in our interactions with others. We are born into a certain familial and societal environment that gives us meaning and provides us with the background against which we understand ourselves and the world. In the second half of the book, Russon explores neurosis. By neuorsis, Russon is not refering to the anxiety disorder but refers, more generally, to any senario in which someone tries pursues an ideal - the ideal of being normal, for example - at the expense of her/his health and welfare. Russon argues that we must reject the notion that we are first free individuals who only subsequently enter the world. Instead, we are, in large part, products of our families and cultures and it is unreasonable to make any demands on ourselves that deny or ignore our embeded or embodied natures.

Though Russon's book is well-written, clear, and well-argued, you need to watch out for his underlying worldview. This account is, by no means, a 'neutral' account of 'human experience'. On the contrary and following Russon's own argument, Human Experience is as much a product of Russon's environment and societal context as the harmful goal of 'normalcy'. Russon's own biases come to the fore, for instance, in such metaphysical claims as there is no soul and there is no exemplar of human perfection. Claims such as these do not arise out of his phenomenological discription. Indeed, phenomenology cannot show that there is no soul, nor can it prove that there is no exemplar of human perfection. This having been said, I did enjoy Human Experience and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in mental illnesses and phenomenology.

I have taught this book in introductory philosophy courses four times. Used in that context, it provides an excellent introduction to key themes and methods of continental philosophy, particularly those associated with phenomenology, existentialism, deconstruction, and psychoanalysis. Russon's approach is not to introduce these ideas through external descriptions of these "schools," but to develop the ideas themselves organically and directly, through clear and engaging prose and examples. Students have told me years later what an impact this book has had on their thinking; isn't that precisely a sign of a great work of philosophy?

This title likely rates more than three stars, yet doesn't quite make it to four. Essentially, Human Experience is an existential project; one that tries to root all the branches of philosophy into an emodied phenomenological intersubjectivity.

There are some interesting insights in the text, as well as some markedly problematic areas to his thought. Regardless, it is far more accessible than most philosophical works, and worth a read.