Increasingly we have come to live in our heads, leaving our bodies
behind. The consequences have been far-reaching, of which cognitive
theory has warned us, advocating a 'return to the body.' This book
employs several case studies-kings performing in ballets, sea captains
dancing with natives, nationalists engaged in gymnastics exercises-to
demonstrate what has been lost and what could be gained by a more
embodied approach to living, to history. These curious movements were
ways to be, to think, to know, to imagine, and to will. They highlight
the limits of historical explanations focusing on cultural factors and
question currently fashionable 'cultural' and 'post-modern'
perspectives. Bodies, cognitive theory tells us, are the same regardless
of historical context, and they engage in the same intentional
activities. Returning to our bodies and their movements enables us not
only to explain historical actions anew, but also to understand
ourselves better.