HLTHAGE 2G03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Moral Treatment, Mania, Medicalization
9 Feb 2018
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Document Summary
Madness is loosely defined, not understood exclusively as a health problem, but is understood in an expansive way. Is about abnormal behaviour, how people struggle, but isn"t analogous with what we consider to be mental illness. Treatment/conception of mentally ill doesn"t necessarily fit simple story of medical progress. No way to date things we would now consider mental illness, we only have descriptions. Earliest recordings from 2ndc bcd, potentially mania, depression, delusions. Suggests that there might have been something about the body that caused people to behave in abnormal ways. Revived by islamic scholars (al-razi, ibn sina), wards for mad found across early islamic world. In medieval europe, some cited spiritual basis for madness, others argued for imbalance of bodily humours. Responses to madness ranged from monastery stays, burning at stake, bloodletting, whipping, etc. We have no formal institutions for dealing with these people. One of the ways of responding to madness.
