Madness In Civilization: A Cultural History of Insanity

Please join us for a panel discussion of Andrew Scull’s new book, Madness in Civilization: A History of Insanity from the Bible to Freud, and the Madhouse to Modern Medicine, with Andrew Scull, George Makari, Patrick McGrath, and Sylvia Nasar.
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. In his recent book Madness in Civilization (Princeton University Press), Andrew Scull traces the long and complex history of this affliction and our attempts to treat it.
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.
nyihumanities.org

[@veryskeptical2409]

"the mental-health’ industry was not established to support people, but to individualize and medicalize the social misery created by capitalist rule.” Susan Rosenthal (2019). Rebel Minds

[@thefuture1892]

hi, how are people individualised through the process? also does it benefit the society to medicalize the social misery, otherwise known as mental illness. If so how does it effect these people? Are there other motivations for this course of action? monetary gain? control of social dialogue? establishments created for prestige of individuals valued over correct course of action? who is the benefactor? unrelated but my skeptical mind with the ability to see how much I do not know is a common recipe for people to assume incorrect self believes of myself. Their minds disgust me

[@cescobar166]

the sound quality is horrific but I am so interested that I put up with this garbage sound quality

[@JCResDoc94]

19:55 First Tranquilizer in Psychiatry

[@kyuubi23octopus]

Why is there no mention of who he stole the subject and title from. What the Foucault, you guys?

[@gfb6745]

did you even watch it? he specifically says that he took Foucault's title ironically to mean madness in civilisation as opposed to madness and civilisation because he recognises that they are not a contrasting phenomenon, and are instead aligned with freudian concept that madness and sanity is a continuum.

[@kyuubi23octopus]

@@gfb6745 you're 100% right. That said, outside of the semantic distinction, there isn't really so much untreated ground as it's mostly a history lecture. I still think it's a bit disingenuous that Foucault isn't cited at all until well into an hour long video when his influence is pretty obvious. I honestly stopped watching after 40 min and probably skipped around afterwards.

[@kyuubi23octopus]

this comment is way less humorous 2 months after the fact, I have to admit. I thought "what the Foucault" was pretty clever at the time. It's pretty cringe with new eyes lol -- especially given that they actually very much did mention Foucault. #YTdrunkdials

[@gfb6745]

@@kyuubi23octopus hahaha we have all been there, mate.

[@hangingthief]

Is it true that it's pronounced "fuck-o"?

[@bobross7977]

TFW u want to updoot, but cant with it sitting at 88

[@jeannettecowley5957]

Oh you funny, funny, people.