On Delusion

by Jennifer Radden

Delusions play a fundamental role in the history of psychology, philosophy and culture, dividing not only the mad from the sane but reason from unreason. Yet the very nature and extent of delusions are poorly understood. What are delusions? How do they differ from everyday errors or mistaken beliefs? Are they scientific categories? In this superb, panoramic investigation of delusion Jennifer Radden explores these questions and more, unravelling a fascinating story that ranges from Descartes’s demon to famous first-hand accounts of delusion, such as Daniel Schreber’s Memoirs of My Nervous Illness. Radden places delusion in both a clinical and cultural context and explores a fascinating range of delusions as both individually and collectively held, including the phenomenon of folies á deux ; spiritual and religious delusions, in particular what distinguishes normal religious belief from delusions with religious themes; how we assess those suffering from delusion from a moral standpoint; and how we are to interpret violent actions when they are the result of delusional thinking. As well as more common delusions, such as those of grandeur, she also discusses some of the most interesting and perplexing forms of clinical delusion, such as Cotard and Capgras.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Psychology

192 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2009

Reviews

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is a delusion? It is a term that is used loosely whose definition is usually limited to "fixed false idea." Jennifer Radden has done a great service by presenting a systematic, clearly written of the difficult problem of actually knowing what we mean when we speak of delusions. With both philosophical and clinical sophistication she provides the first adequate discussion of this important concept that I have read. I hope that it will be read by everyone training to work in psychiatry, psychology and social work. The final chapters discuss the power of 'delusions' to mobilize mass movements. These chapters will be of help in understanding some of the mass movements of our times.

[Craig French · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, readable, introduction to some philosophical issues about delusion.