The Major Symptoms Of Hysteria: Fifteen Lectures Given In The Medical School Of Harvard University

by Pierre Janet

The book titled ""The Major Symptoms Of Fifteen Lectures Given In The Medical School Of Harvard University"" is authored by Pierre Janet. The book is a comprehensive guide to understanding the major symptoms of hysteria. The author has presented a series of fifteen lectures that were delivered in the Medical School of Harvard University. The book is divided into chapters that cover different aspects of hysteria, including the history of the condition, its symptoms, and treatment options.The author has provided detailed descriptions of the various symptoms of hysteria, including paralysis, convulsions, and sensory disturbances. He has also discussed the psychological factors that contribute to the development of hysteria. The book is written in a clear and concise manner, making it easy for readers to understand the complex concepts and ideas.The book is a valuable resource for medical students, psychologists, and anyone interested in understanding the complexities of hysteria. It provides a comprehensive overview of the condition, its symptoms, and treatment options. The author's expertise and experience in the field of psychology make this book a must-read for anyone interested in this subject. Overall, ""The Major Symptoms Of Hysteria"" is an informative and insightful book that provides a comprehensive understanding of this complex condition.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.

Genres: Psychology

356 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1907

About the author

Pierre Marie Félix Janet was a pioneering French psychologist, philosopher, and psychotherapist in the field of dissociation and traumatic memory. He is ranked alongside William James and Wilhelm Wundt as one of the founding fathers of psychology.

Janet was one of the first people to allege a connection between events in a subject's past life and his or her present-day trauma, and coined the words "dissociation" and "subconscious". His study of the "magnetic passion" or "rapport" between the patient and the hypnotist anticipated later accounts of the transference phenomenon.

The 20th century saw Janet developing a grand model of the mind in terms of levels of energy, efficiency and social competence, which he set out in publications including Obsessions and Psychasthenia (1903) and From Anguish to Ecstasy (1926), among others. In its concern for the construction of the personality in social terms, this model has been compared to the social behaviorism of George Herbert Mead something which explains Lacan's early praise of "Janet, who demonstrated so admirably the signification of feelings of persecution as phenomenological moments in social behavior".

Reviews

[Yahya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Histeriye dair en başa dönmek istediğinizde okumak isteyeceğiniz biri Pierre Janet. Charcot, Breuer ve Freud ile birlikte dönemin önemli psikolog veya nörologlarından biri. Bu kitabı da Histeri üzerine ABD'ye Harvard Üniversitesi'ne davet edildikten sonra, orada histeri üzerine verdiği konferanslardan oluşuyor. Daha çok konferans tarzında olduğu için genelde kitap vaka örnekleriyle ilerliyor. Histeri semptomlarına eşlik belli başlı temel belirtilerin vakalarda nasıl ortaya çıktığını çok akıcı bir şekilde anlatıyor. Yani bu kitap belli kuramsal bir bütünden ziyade olgular üzerine kurulmuş bir yapıya sahip. Histerinin o dönemde nasıl ele alındığını ve sürecini bilmek isteyenler için güzel bir kitap.

"Histeride fonksiyonların tamamen çözülmediğini, sistematikleşme içinde serbest kalmış bir şekilde mevcut olmaya devam ettiklerini unutmamalıyız. Çözülen şey kişiliktir; aynı kişilik etrafında farklı fonksiyonların gruplanma sistemidir. Histeri bir zihinsel hastalıksa şayet, diğer zihinsel hastalıklar gibi sosyal duyarlıkları zayıflatan yahut düşüncelerin oluşumunu tahrip eden bir zihinsel hastalık olmadığını iddia etmeyi sürdürmekteyim. Kişisel sentez hastalığıdır bu ve halihazırda sunmuş olduğum formülü, pek az bir değişiklikle yeniden ele almam gerekirse: Histeri, kişisel bilinç alanının geri çekilmesi ve kişiliği oluşturan fonksiyonların ve düşünce sistemlerinin çözülüp serbest kalması eğilimi ile karakterize edilen bir tür zihinsel depresyondur."

[Rick Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting book about hysteria, mostly meant for physicians. Summarizes the extensive work done over decades, mostly in the late nineteenth century, mostly by neurologists, mostly in France. Those neurologists who got deepest into hysteria (like Freud and Janet) moved towards psychology. More than Freud, Janet stuck to basic neurological concepts and “common sense” intuitive explanations. Although his understanding of hysteria is common sense psychology, he describes neurological signs at length. It becomes clear that Janet (and likely other neurologists) lived in a separate intellectual world than the psychiatrists. He dealt with hysteria and neurasthenia; psychiatrists with mania, delirium, dementia etc. Some of the cases he describes would have been diagnosed differently by a contemporary or present-day psychiatrist, as catatonia, psychotic depression, etc. His understanding is somewhat hampered by the limited state of technology and neuroscience 100+ years ago, but he makes up for it with keen observation, careful thought and immense experience.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Janet's work certainly has its limitations if we try to apply it wholesale to present-day theories about structural dissociation of personality (which is where I do disagree with Otto van der Hart's excellent work on the subject), it provides a good basis for understanding just how foundational this dissociation can really be when trauma has occurred. Imagine if he and Freud could have worked together!