Splendors and Miseries of the Brain examines the elegant and efficient machinery of the brain, showing that by studying music, art, literature, and love, we can reach important conclusions about how the brain functions.

discusses creativity and the search for perfection in the brain

examines the power of the unfinished and why it has such a powerful hold on the imagination

discusses Platonic concepts in light of the brain

shows that aesthetic theories are best understood in terms of the brain

discusses the inherited concept of unity-in-love using evidence derived from the world literature of love

addresses the role of the synthetic concept in the brain (the synthesis of many experiences) in relation to art, using examples taken from the work of Michelangelo, Cézanne, Balzac, Dante, and others