The body in the German neurology of the early twentieth century

Abstract

In the past years, there has been an increasing interest in the experience of the own body in the field of experimental psychology and cognitive neuroscience. However, these questions are not new to neuroscience. Interestingly, the German neurology of the early twentieth century showed an extraordinary interest in the neurological processes underlying the experience of the body. One of the most controversial theoretical frameworks to this day is the distinction between the body schema and the body image. The latter is often referred to Paul Schilder and has caused some considerable discussions not only today, but also during the 1920/1930s. This chapter discusses Paul Schilder’s work in more detail, with a particular focus on his German writings. The chapter will describe the influence of Carl Wernicke and his concept of the somatopsyche. It was an important source of inspiration not only to Schilder, but also to the whole German neurology of that time. As the chapter will show, Schilder and his contemporaries had rather diverse concepts of the body image. By shedding light on some of these discussions, and the persons behind them, it is hoped the chapter will provide a better understanding of the evolution of this concept within the early German-speaking neurology.