| This essay traces early modern ideas about the self in two major works of the Spanish Golden Age: Cervantes' Don Quijote and Calderon's La vida es sueno. A theoretical frame based on cognitive psychology is provided, in order to introduce the three cornerstones of the study: consciousness, theory of mind, and perception. Present neuropsychological notions of the mind intersect with medical and philosophical views that circulated in Spain during the Renaissance and the Baroque. The resulting bridges help us understand some of the cognitive ideas exposed in the examined works, while illustrating the osmosis between literature and psychology. Fictional minds are considered in relation to the real human brains that follow them: by "watching" Sancho and Segismundo act according to what they think that others believe and want, Golden Age individuals-just as 21st century ones-engage in a simulated process of intentionality. They are capable of drawing conclusions which they can extrapolate to their own lives. In this regard, literature functions as a showcase, a catalogue of possible minds and behaviors, a rehearsing tool for adaptation. |
