Anthropology of mental illness

Journal of Mental Health, 2010

Excerpt: When one thinks of the history of psychiatry one inevitably recalls the forensic histories of Andrew Scull, the impressive scholarship of Roy Porter and, no doubt, the revisionist history of Michel Foucault. In this edited collection, Greg Eghigian attempts none of this. Through 55 excerpts of original texts (primary sources) we are presented with a panoramic view of the diverse experiences, understandings, and responses relating to phenomena that historicallyfall under the names madness, lunacy, insanity, and mental illness. In his brief introduction, Eghigian is careful not to influence or bias the reader in her appraisal of the texts and through a series of disclaimers sets the mood he considers appropriate for the ensuing foray in to the history of psychiatry. Thus, he reminds us that the book does not attempt a historical narrative, nor should the texts included be taken as a justification for one or other broad conception (e.g. social/ biological/ spiritual) of insanity. As he puts it, ‘‘the documents presented here are meant to inspire interpretation, discussion, and debate about how madness has historically been imagined, talked about, and handled.’’

2015

The loss of reason, a sense of alienation from the commonsense world we all like to imagine we inhabit, the shattering emotional turmoil that seizes hold and won't let go--these are some of the traits we associate with madness. Today, mental disturbance is most commonly viewed through a medical lens, but societies have also sought to make sense of it through religion or the supernatural, or by constructing psychological or social explanations in an effort to tame the demons of unreason. Madness in Civilization traces the long and complex history of this affliction and our attempts to treat it. Beautifully illustrated throughout, Madness in Civilization takes readers from antiquity to today, painting a vivid and often harrowing portrait of the different ways that cultures around the world have interpreted and responded to the seemingly irrational, psychotic, and insane. From the Bible to Sigmund Freud, from exorcism to mesmerism, from Bedlam to Victorian asylums, from the theory of humors to modern pharmacology, the book explores the manifestations and meanings of madness, its challenges and consequences, and our varied responses to it. It also looks at how insanity has haunted the imaginations of artists and writers and describes the profound influence it has had on the arts, from drama, opera, and the novel to drawing, painting, and sculpture. Written by one of the world's preeminent historians of psychiatry, Madness in Civilization is a panoramic history of the human encounter with unreason.

2015

The loss of reason, a sense of alienation from the commonsense world we all like to imagine we inhabit, the shattering emotional turmoil that seizes hold and won't let go--these are some of the traits we associate with madness. Today, mental disturbance is most commonly viewed through a medical lens, but societies have also sought to make sense of it through religion or the supernatural, or by constructing psychological or social explanations in an effort to tame the demons of unreason. Madness in Civilization traces the long and complex history of this affliction and our attempts to treat it. Beautifully illustrated throughout, Madness in Civilization takes readers from antiquity to today, painting a vivid and often harrowing portrait of the different ways that cultures around the world have interpreted and responded to the seemingly irrational, psychotic, and insane. From the Bible to Sigmund Freud, from exorcism to mesmerism, from Bedlam to Victorian asylums, from the theory of humors to modern pharmacology, the book explores the manifestations and meanings of madness, its challenges and consequences, and our varied responses to it. It also looks at how insanity has haunted the imaginations of artists and writers and describes the profound influence it has had on the arts, from drama, opera, and the novel to drawing, painting, and sculpture. Written by one of the world's preeminent historians of psychiatry, Madness in Civilization is a panoramic history of the human encounter with unreason.

Medical Anthropology Quarterly, 2017

This paper argues in favor of two related theses. First, due to a fundamental, biologically grounded world-openness, human culture is a biological imperative. As both biology and culture evolve historically, cultures rise and fall and the diversity of the human species develops. Second, in this historical process of rise and fall, abnormality plays a crucial role. From the perspective of a broader context traditionally addressed by speculative philosophies of history, the so-called mental disorders may be seen as entailing particular functional advantages, and thus have a great impact on the course of human history. Nowadays, however, we live under a threat of cultural uniformity. While the diversity of the human species is cherished at the political level, it is being slowly eradicated through medical means. This paradox is a dangerous feature of contemporary globalized society that can lead to highly problematic consequences.

For schizophrenia, as well as for many other disorders, there are many approaches (McHugh and Slavney, 1998).Nowadays, it is referred to as a mental disorder. This understanding of schizophrenia implies the presence of a core set, which includes symptoms and signs that we can diagnose as well as a specific etiology. This is the paradigm of the disease, and when it became clear that schizophrenia cannot fully comply with this paradigm, psychiatric problems began. We are going to briefly illuminate that stage in the history of psychiatry and mention the discussions of experts who have sought to resolve the problem of schizophrenia. The bulk of this essay will be devoted to another approach to schizophrenia - anthropological.

This paper argues in favor of two related theses. First, due to a fundamental, biologically grounded world-openness, human culture is a biological imperative. As both biology and culture evolve historically, cultures rise and fall and the diversity of the human species develops. Second, in this historical process of rise and fall, abnormality plays a crucial role. From the perspective of a broader context traditionally addressed by speculative philosophies of history, the so-called mental disorders may be seen as entailing particular functional advantages, and thus have a great impact on the course of human history. Nowadays, however, we live under a threat of cultural uniformity. While the diversity of the human species is cherished at the political level, it is being slowly eradicated through medical means. This paradox is a dangerous feature of contemporary globalized society that can lead to highly problematic consequences.