Overview
The session will discuss the portrayal of mental illness, specifically psychosis in literature.
Allan Beveridge will talk about the 19th century, French poet, Gerard de Nerval, who wrote about his bouts of psychosis in his novel, Aurelia. He employed a double narration: one in which he described the details of his illness; and a second in which he put forward his view that he had undergone a spiritual and mystical journey. The talk examines Nerval’s work and what it tells about the nature of psychosis.
Dr Rebecca Lawrence has written candidly about her own depressive illness in articles in the Guardian, Prospect and the Psychiatric Bulletin. Here she will discuss how she approaches writing about her illness and the implications for recovery.
Nathan Filer is a writer, university lecturer and broadcaster with a special interest in mental health, having previously worked as a mental health nurse. He is most well known for authoring the award winning novel 'The Shock of the Fall' amongst others, and this year completed his PHD thesis on 'Lives lived at the edges: on storytelling that honours the complexity of mental illness and trauma' which he will discuss.
Objectives
The session will ask (and aim to answer) the following questions:
- Is it possible to write about the experience of mental illness (more specifically, psychosis) in a way that is authentic and which captures its essence?
- Can writing reveal aspects not captured by formal psychiatric descriptions?
- Can it reveal existential factors about the experience of illness, which relate to the need for meaning and an understanding of one’s plight?
- Does writing about one’s mental difficulties help one to cope with them and even to aid recovery?
It will argue that by engaging with such writing, psychiatrists can improve their understanding of their patients and of mental illness.
Speakers
Chair: Professor Femi Oyebode, University of Birmingham, Birmingham
Dr Allan Beveridge, Royal College of Psychiatrists, Scotland
Dr Rebecca Lawrence, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Edinburgh
Dr Nathan Filer, Bath Spa University, Bath
