I think heÕs going to
do a guest blog on my critical psychiatry blog, so IÕll let him speak for
himself, Andrew!
Best wishes, Duncan
On 2 Apr 2020, at
03:06, Andrew Scull <ascull@ad.ucsd.edu>
wrote:
Dear Duncan.
I was
"quoting" by memory from Alan Howard's translation that appears as
Madness and Civilization. Like you, I'm constrained by the damned corona
virus.
Yes, you may post my
response on your blog if you'd like. I don't know John's work, so will try to get a copy. Difficult just at the
moment, as you'll appreciate. What sort of territory does it cover?
Best wishes,
Andrew
From: Duncan Double <dbd10@cam.ac.uk>
Sent: Wednesday, April 1, 2020 3:04 PM
To: Andrew Scull <ascull@ad.ucsd.edu>
Subject: Re: The origins of psychiatry according to Scull and
Foucault
PS. Are we talking
about the same paragraph which in History of Madness is translated as:-
Since the late eighteenth century, the life of unreason has only manifested
itself in the incendiary work of a small number of writers such as Hlderlin, Nerval, Nietzsche and Artaud — works that could never be reduced to these
alienations that cure, resisting, through their own strength, that gigantic
moral imprisonment that became known, ironically perhaps, as Pinel and TukeÕs liberation of
the mad.
I havenÕt got a copy
of Madness and civilisation (and I cant go to a library because of coronavirus
restrictions!)
By the way, John
Iliopoulos has been in touch and is also interested in your article, in History
of Psychiatry, yes. Do you know his work? Maybe IÕve been too influenced by it,
although I think it certainly deserves more attention than it seems to have
had. Perhaps you can do a review for History of Psychiatry?!
I did suggest to German Berrios that he ought to
commission a review some time ago, but he didnÕt seem interested in taking it
up, I think because then heÕd got enough reviews to publish anyway.
Do let me know if you
are happy for me to post your comment as a response on my blog.
Best wishes, Duncan
Sent from my iPad
On 1 Apr 2020, at
22:51, Duncan Double <dbd10@cam.ac.uk>
wrote:
Thanks,
Andrew. Do you mind if I post your email as a comment on my blog.
Best wishes, Duncan
On 1 Apr 2020, at
19:46, Andrew Scull <ascull@ad.ucsd.edu>
wrote:
Dear Duncan,
I greatly appreciate
your taking the time to forward this piece. So far as your discussions of
Tuke, Pinel, and Willis are
concerned, there is not much with which I would disagree - I would add some
complexity, but that wouldn't alter my fundamental agreement with what you have
set out. It does correspond pretty closely with what I have to say on the
subject in The Most Solitary of Afflictions, and in Madness in Civilization.
Please note the full context of what Foucault has to say about T and P:
"that gigantic moral imprisonment that, doubtless by antiphrasis, we call
the 'liberation' of the insane by Pinel and Tuke." Not, as I would have it, that we need to
see moral treatment as Janus-faced, embracing a mixture of positive features
and more intrusive controls, but "a gigantic moral imprisonment."
As for Foucault, my
criticisms of his scholarship and its empirical foundations stand. It is
interesting that Uppsala rejected the thesis that became Folie
et derision precisely because it was historically so weak, and I have pointed
out how devoid of reference to 20th century scholarship the book is. I am
far from the only person to have commented on Foucault's status as a critic of
the Enlightenment, and so far as I know, even true believers like Colin Gordon
do not take issue with this characterization. More generally, as I've
said in the piece that is (I think) the one you are responding to, a point by point discussion of how I differ from Foucault
strikes me as pointless now. Those who want to compare our respective
accounts of the territory should read his History of Madness alongside my
Madness in Civilization. The differences in scholarship and
interpretation should then stand out in bold relief.
For all that, and
presuming you are responding to my forthcoming piece in History of Psychiatry
(which is available on line), mine is not a complete rejection of everything
Foucault has to say, or a denial of the important role his work played in the
re-orientation of the history of psychiatry. I merely think he got lots
of things badly wrong, and the field has now moved on from the iconoclasm he
represented.
Best wishes, and thank
you for being in touch and taking these issues seriously!
Andrew
From: Duncan Double <dbd10@cam.ac.uk>
Sent: Wednesday, April 1, 2020 1:47 AM
To: Andrew Scull <ascull@ad.ucsd.edu>
Subject: The origins of psychiatry according to Scull and Foucault
My comments on your
piece on Foucault https://criticalpsychiatry.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-origins-of-psychiatry-according-to.html
Kind regards, Duncan