Unit One Reaction Paper

Mental Illness throughout history has incorporated a stigma around it. It may have been because there was not a lot of knowledge or treatment for it at the time. Over the years and with the advancement of knowledge, medicine, and technology, society has a better grasp on it and how to treat it. The term “madness” is one that has been used for centuries. The articles from this unit reflect on how “madness” has been perceived through the eyes of medical professionals, members of the military, psychologists, and more. There was a reoccurring theme when asked what “madness” means and how is it described today. Today, the common words related to madness include crazy, insane, foolish, disturbed, deranged, demented, ill, and many more. To understated “madness” it is important to see how the concept has evolved over the centuries of where the word began.

The first article was about cowardice and shell shock and how they differ. Being afraid and showing cowardice is not a new concept. In the 1900s it was investigated more and cowardice started erupting as an excuse to get out of war (“Cowardice and Shell-shock”). For example, cowardice was considered a military crime because it was looked at as voluntary (“Cowardice and Shell-shock”). There were military personnel who tried to demean and punish those who tried to escape going into war by using shell shock as an excuse (“Cowardice and Shell-shock”). That seems harsh but during the time there was a prerogative on men not being afraid and showing no fear when it is only human to show fear.

William Cullen was involved in the eighteenth-century movement involving the human nervous system and its role with medicine (Eghigian, p. 85). There was alot of talk surrounding the body and what makes a corpse and living body different. To understand the brain and the concept of being “mad” it is crucial to understand the human body as a whole. Although corpses and living bodies may look the same and have the same interior, it’s the nerves themselves that make them different. There are different states of nervous power examples include “…sensibility, irritability, celerity, mobility, and strength” (Eghigian, p.88). Cullen’s work along with the shell-shock article share a similarity in trying to understand weakness; and if weakness causes certain mental states.

Freud investigated psychoanalysis and the overarching term neurology (Eghigian, p.207). There was mention in this article of patients he worked with and their diagnosis. Freud was also involved in the understanding of the superego, ego, and id. Freud worked closely with the unconscious part of the brain. “Mind” was even mentioned as one of the most frequent words. Freud used (a)etiology with one of his patients Janet who showed symptoms of physical and mental disturbances (Eghigian, p.208). She had impaired vision, nausea, disturbance of eye movements and more (Eghigian, p.208). At one point in history one might put Janet in a madhouse or asylum. With time, there were more mental hospitals, which is very beneficial because it tried to eliminate the stigma. Mental health can be taboo, but it is something everyone has and must deal with.

PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder drew its inspiration from “traumatic neurosis and “shell shock” (Eghigian, 402). PTSD is a disorder that develops in those who experience a major traumatic experience. After the Vietnam War PTSD become more talked about. Those who fought in the war came back with severe trauma that needed to be dealt with. This relates to the previous article about shell shock because shell shock and PTSD are essentially the same.

In conclusion, mental illness and “madness” has been mentioned greatly throughout history. A lot of talk about mental health has negative connotations to it. Even today it is seen that words like foolish, insane, disturbed, ill, demented, and many more are first to pop up when searching “madness” and terms closely related to it. Hopefully as more people come to terms with the importance of mental health it won’t be considered taboo and something to be embarrassed about.

Sources:

C:and Shell-Shock, n.d. www.vlib.us/medical/cowardice.htm.

Eghigian, Greg. From Madness to Mental Health : Psychiatric Disorder and Its Treatment in Western Civilization. Rutgers University Press, 2010. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=439506&site=ehost-live.

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