title: Through the looking glass: self and others.
abstract: In the present article we discuss the relevance of the mirror mechanism for our sense of self and our sense of others. We argue that, by providing us with an understanding from the inside of actions, the mirror mechanism radically challenges the traditional view of the self and of the others. Indeed, this mechanism not only reveals the common ground on the basis of which we become aware of ourselves as selves distinct from other selves, but also sheds new light on the content of our self and other experience, showing that we primarily experience ourselves and the others in terms of our own and of their motor possibilities respectively.
authors.affiliation: University of Milan, Department of Philosophy, via Festa del Perdono 7, I-20122 Milano, Italy. corrado.sinigaglia@unimi.it
authors.forename: Corrado
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sinigaglia
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rizzolatti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001364:Awareness / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D032882:Comprehension / Q000502:physiology; D004532:Ego; D000882:Haplorhini; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D033182:Intention; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D009043:Motor Activity; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D012919:Social Behavior