[PHILOSOPHY] FOUCAULT, Michel

Madness and Civilization; A History of Insanity in The Age of Reason

New York: Pantheon Books, 1965. First Edition. First Printing. Octavo. 22cm. Publisher's deep red cloth titled and decorated in gilt and black to spine and front board. Dustjacket. 299pp. Strong and tight, light bumping to spine ends, small spot or stain to edge of rear board; internally clean and fresh, yellow topstain, fore-edge untrimmed, spotting to page edges; in a strong example of the dustjacket with some soiling to the white portions, a little shallow chipping to the spine ends, and some light toning to the spine panel itself. A very good copy with a little shelfwear.

Foucault's ambitious attempt to trace the human understanding of madness and insanity from the Middle Ages through to the 20th Century. He makes the point that confining the insane wasn't really widespread until the 17th century and later, and explores the way that attitudes to insanity have changed from the mentally ill in one's community being reminders of misfortune and the importance of charity, like the lepers allowed to congregate outside the city gates; to the insane being people who could safely be hidden away out of sight and mind, to exist only as a distant threat.

Price: $200.00

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