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Schizophrenia in 19th Century Literature

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Schizophrenia in 19th Century Literature

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My artifact is the short story written by Nicolai Gogol in 1834 titled "Diary of a Madman". Nicolai Gogol was a talented Russian artist and this story was especially pertinent to neuroscience and schizophrenia¹.

The story provided a very detailed description of schizophrenia and it was one of the earliest writings to ever do this. This story has provided a glimpse into the past for neuroscientists and historians to understand early opinions and thoughts of schizophrenia. Though not entirely accurate it still paints a solid picture of the disorder and we can still use it as a supplementary resource when studying the past of schizophrenia.

Source:

(1):https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1121915/#:~:text=Gogol's%20apparent%20case%20of%20schizophrenia,increasingly%20unlikely%2C%20though%20not%20impossible

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Mary Todd Lincoln was the first lady of the United States under President Abraham Lincoln. She lived from 1818 to 1882. She suffered many tragedies in her life including losing her three sons and her husband. Throughout her life she struggled with a variety of mental issues such as public outbursts, angry temper, and mood swings. Due to this many psychologists have speculated that she had undiagnosed schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia affects people from all walks of life including those of high status such as Mary Lincoln. Unfortunately for the First Lady, the treatments of the time were not very effective and she was committed to a mental asylum by her last living son¹.

Source:

(1):https://www.banyanmentalhealth.com/2021/12/07/schizophrenia-in-famous-people/

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My artifact is an image of Emil Kraeplin who was a German psychiatrist that lived from 1856 to 1926¹. He made great progress in studying schizophrenia from a scientific perspective². He was very crucial in changing some of the pre-existing opinions about schizophrenia, for instance, in the Middle Ages those who had symptoms of schizophrenia were considered to be possessed by demons or other evil influences. Because of the great religious influence at the time this was the prevailing justification for those affected by disorders such as schizophrenia².

Emil helped to shift this view by claiming that schizophrenia was a natural condition that could be explained scientifically. He even claimed an early term to describe schizophrenia called "dementia praecox" in 1893². Though this term may not be commonly used today, it was an important shift in the classification of schizophrenia from a moral issue to a scientific condition.

Sources:

(1): https://www.britannica.com/biography/Emil-Kraepelin

(2): https://psychcentral.com/schizophrenia/history-of-schizophrenia#modern-diagnosis

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Painting of Dr. Pinel having the chains taken off of patients at an insane asylum

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The artifact I chose was a painting of Dr. Phillip Pinel. He was a French doctor that helped change the way psychiatric patients were treated, this included those with schizophrenia. He began to do this right before the start of the 19th century. He laid the groundwork for compassionate psychiatric treatment that continues to this day. He was based out of France and spent much time in Paris. Before him, many patients were not treated well during their time in insane asylums. They would be chained up and deprived of many basic necessities. Dr. Pinel was able to change that in some asylums, he made an effort to provide a clean and calm environment for his patients¹. This was especially important for patients with schizophrenia as it gave them a stable setting that would not make their ailment worse than it already was. In addition to this Dr. Pinel also made sure to build relationships with his patients as a means of breaking down barriers that may exist between him and those he treated.

Dr. Pinel was instrumental in the field of neuroscience, especially in providing care for people with disorders such as schizophrenia. He offered a holistic approach to treating his patients and he treated them like human beings instead of animals.

Sources:

(1): https://psychcentral.com/schizophrenia/history-of-schizophrenia#modern-diagnosis

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A Systematic Approach to Diagnosing Schizophrenia

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A Systematic Approach to Diagnosing Schizophrenia

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At the end of the 19th century, Eugene Bleuler was the first to use the term "schizophrenia". Schizophrenia replaced "dementia praecox" and became the predominant way of categorizing this disorder. In addition to this Eugene was able to develop a more structured way of diagnosing schizophrenia¹. He called it the "four As" of schizophrenia and that is what I chose for this artifact.

Eugene was a psychiatrist in Switzerland and his work was able to push this field of behavioral science in a more logical direction. By utilizing the "four As" he was able to make known the symptoms of schizophrenia in a scientific way that was no longer based on cultural and religious influences. Much can be learned from his early description of schizophrenia symptoms and neuroscientists are still building off of his initial observations.

Source:

(1): https://psychcentral.com/schizophrenia/history-of-schizophrenia#modern-diagnosis

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Today we treat schizophrenia much more differently than in the past. We have a variety of techniques and treatments to help manage the disorder, although as of now there is not yet a cure available.

The main source of treatment as of right now is medication. This includes a variety of antipsychotics such as clozapine and olanzapine. These are often combined and uniquely dosed to each patient's needs.

Besides this, a variety of therapies exist to help individuals with schizophrenia lead fulfilling and good lives. These include social skills training and other behavior therapies. In certain cases, electroconvulsive therapy is utilized when an adult does not respond to the medication¹.

Source:

(1): https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20354449

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For my docent entry, I chose Adolph Meyer to lead my guests through the exhibit. He was born in Switzerland in 1866 and then became a psychiatrist in the United States. He was very influential in the field of neuroscience and also led a push to make care for schizophrenia more humane¹. His focus was on mental hospitals in the United States. He passed away in 1950².

Meyer would make a great guide through this exhibit as he was well-versed in neuroscience and the field of mental health. He was also born at a very interesting time when sentiments towards schizophrenia were changing and he would be able to provide a perspective from both the new and old school of thought. He would also be able to approach the study of the history of the disease in a compassionate yet analytical way.

Source:

(1): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8747631/#:~:text=While%20Kraepelin%20in%20Europe%20described,convulsive%20therapy%2C%20and%20frontal%20leukotomy.

(2): https://www.britannica.com/biography/Adolf-Meyer