Article ID: CBB001551835

Matters of Sex and Gender in F. J. Gall's Organology: A Primary Approach (2014)

unapi

The originator of phrenology, F. J. Gall (1758--1828), saw himself as a natural scientist and physiologist. His approach consisted of brain anatomy but also of palpating skulls and inferring mental faculties. Unlike some of the philosophical principles underlying Gall's work, his conception of sex/gender has not yet been examined in detail. In this article, I will focus on Gall's treatment of men and women, his idea of sex differences, and how far an assumed existence of dichotomous sexes influenced his work. In examining his primary writings, I will argue that Gall held some contradictory views concerning the origin and manifestation of sex/gender characteristics, which were caused by the collision of his naturalistic ideas and internalized gender stereotypes. I will conclude that Gall did not aim at deducing or legitimizing sex/gender relations scientifically, but that he tried to express metaphysical reasons for a given social order in terms of functional brain mechanisms.

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Includes Series Articles

Article Chátal, Alexandr (2014) Jiří Procháska (1749--1820): Part 2: “De structura nervorum”---Studies on a Structure of the Nervous System. Journal of the History of the Neurosciences (pp. 1-25). unapi

Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB001551835/

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Authors & Contributors
Eling, Paul
Finger, Stanley
Whitaker, Harry A.
Beierholm, Simon
Gonia Jarema
Thomassen, Jacob Lauge
Concepts
Phrenology
Neurosciences
Brain localization
Science and culture
Psychology
Biographies
Time Periods
19th century
18th century
Places
France
Germany
Netherlands
Denmark
Vilnius (Lithuania or Poland)
Copenhagen (Denmark)
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