Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason
Written by Michel Foucault
Narrated by Dave Gillies
4/5
()
About this audiobook
Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault. Nacido en 1926 en Poitiers, Francia, es uno de los pensadores más influyentes del siglo XX. Alumno de la École Normale Supérieure de París, cursó estudios de Filosofía y Psicología. Durante la década de 1960, encabezó el Departamento de Filosofía de la Universidad de Vincennes. En 1970 fue elegido en el Collège de France, una de las instituciones académicas más prestigiosas de su país, como profesor de Historia de los Sistemas de Pensamiento, cátedra que dictó hasta su muerte, en junio de 1984. En los años setenta y ochenta, su valiosa obra, publicada en gran parte por Siglo XXI Editores, lo convirtió en un intelectual de referencia y lo llevó a dictar numerosas conferencias y cursos en todo el mundo. Comprometido activamente en las luchas políticas y sociales, Foucault llevó a cabo un análisis minucioso de los mecanismos de control y de gobierno de la sociedad. Su pensamiento continúa siendo fuente de inspiración para estudiosos de distintas áreas y para quienes buscan mejorar la situación de los excluidos (los presos, los locos, las minorías sexuales, los inmigrantes, los jóvenes).
Related to Madness and Civilization
Related audiobooks
The History of Sexuality, Vol. 1: An Introduction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Introduction to The Philosophy of History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Totem and Taboo Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rebel: An Essay on Man in Revolt Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anarchism and Other Essays Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Discourse Upon the Origin and the Foundation the Inequality Among Mankind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Birth and Death of Meaning: An Interdisciplinary Perspective on the Problem of Man; 2nd Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Discipline & Punish: The Birth of the Prison Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mythologies: The Complete Edition, in a New Translation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Irrational Man: A Study in Existential Philosophy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Life of the Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Like a Thief in Broad Daylight: Power in the Era of Post-Human Capitalism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A History of Western Philosophy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ethics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Critique of Pure Reason Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Myth of Sisyphus And Other Essays Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Good and Evil Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ethics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pragmatism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tractatus Logico - Philosophicus Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Joyful Wisdom (or: The Gay Science) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Capital: a critical analysis of capitalist production, Vol 1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ego and His Own Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Varieties of Religious Experience Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ethics in the Real World: 82 Brief Essays on Things That Matter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Genealogy of Morals Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Utilitarianism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Twilight of the Idols Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Philosophy For You
How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stoicism: How to Use Stoic Philosophy to Find Inner Peace and Happiness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/512 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson - Book Summary: An Antidote to Chaos Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tao Te Ching: A New English Version Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mastering Logical Fallacies: The Definitive Guide to Flawless Rhetoric and Bulletproof Logic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Tao of Pooh Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fierce Self-Compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim Their Power, and Thrive Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dao De Jing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The School of Life: An Emotional Education Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The More of Less Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary: The Laws of Human Nature: by Robert Greene: Key Takeaways, Summary & Analysis Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The End is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life, and Achieve Real Happiness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Communicating Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Living: Peace and Freedom in the Here and Now Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Holographic Universe: The Revolutionary Theory of Reality Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Life Is a 4-Letter Word: Laughing and Learning Through 40 Life Lessons Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Conscious: A Brief Guide to the Fundamental Mystery of the Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/51900: Or; The Last President Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book of Five Rings Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Heretic's Handbook Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Madness and Civilization
341 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I was expecting more of a case history/solid changes or advancements in diagnosis and treatment, that was not to be here. This book seems to be more of a pompous philosophical/societal review of madness and the judgement of such with a few scientific/history based things sprinkled throughout. The author seemed to be fond of using 3 words when 1 would do and rewording ideas multiple times.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Four stars, I guess? I don't really know how to review something like this. There were several sections, including the conclusion, that I didn't feel I understood at all. And Foucault continues to frustrate me in the way that he seems deliberately obscure: while I certainly wouldn't say that he is dealing in simple concepts, they seem like they don't need to be as difficult as he is making them. But for all of its faults and quirks, this was a totally rewarding book. The idea that psychoanalysis deals not with the eternal structure of the human mind but rather with a set of complexes developing within the last few centuries of Western history was particularly fascinating to me. A brilliant book: maybe someday I'll actually read the entire History of Madness, but I doubt that it will be anytime soon!
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Difficult to review because I wouldn't claim to have a clear understanding of everything that the author is attempting to communicate. It doesn't help that the syntax can be brutal, with quite a bit of humanities jargon. That being said, I found long sections interesting/provocative. His criticism of the evolving conceptualization of "madness" in western society is interesting and he makes a good argument that our modern understanding still rests largely on a foundation of metaphor rather than the objective, empirical basis we would like to believe. On the other hand, it seems to me that this is the same method he employs in examining the issue, making me wonder if he could have found anything else. It would be interesting to hear Foucault's thoughts on this same topic in the wake of the pharmacological revolution of the last few decades.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Foucault is an brilliant Historian who charts the progress or lack of it of the treatment of the mentally ill. Read to be disturbed at how they were treated.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I found this an easier read than Foucault's other work. It's a fascinating look at the history of our culture's understanding and treatment of madness, as well the changing relationship we've had with the state of believed madness. And of course, it's wonderfully written with humor as an added bonus.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A brilliant, innovative and mendacious history.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Foucault employs an exacting and yet artistic methodology of historical-sociological interpretation of the history of madness in the age of reason. In this impressive work, he discovers that the origin of insanity, of psychological confinement, corresponds with the diminution of leprosy in Europe, and that the sectors of institutional power sought to find another means of normalization and social control through the imprisonment, and public degradation of the mentally ill, the poor, and the homeless. This power dynamic later manifests itself in the form of absolute confinement and normalcy, in which the insane were subjected to physiological experimentation, which marks an apparent disregard for Descartes' mind-body distinction. Foucault skillfully outlines the means of psychological repair through the exploration of the balancing of the four humors, to the revealing of insanity's non-being and non-reason through its release to the ultimate freedom of nature. Foucault then examines the transition of psychology from the real of biological-intellectual non-reason, to the imposition of moral and religious absolutism and the birth of the asylum, and finally to the (perhaps salvation) of Freud and psychoanalysis, in which the patient-doctor relationship is recreated as a mode of observation, not judgment or condescension, "he made it the Mirror in which madness, in an almost motionless movement, clings to and casts off itself" (pg. 278). Foucault's Madness and Civilization represents an important breakthrough in the field of post-modern philosophy; it is truly an excellent work of scholarship and profound insight.-As a side note, this edition appears to be an incomplete version of Foucault's book, as it contains nothing on Descartes and his methodoligical relation between madness and doubt raised in the Meditations. This section would later be the focus of Derrida's criticism in his lecture 'Cogito and the History of Madness,' published in 'Writing and Difference,'which caused a rift between the two thinkers. The Vintage edition appears to be only one half of Foucault's original book. The complete version of the text is going to be published by Routledge later this year, so hold off on this one.