Insanity in Ancient and Modern Life, with chapters on its prevention is a medical book written by the English physicist and practical worker in medicinal psychology Daniel Hack Tuke (1827-1895) in 1878.
[1] Tuke dedicated much of his time encouraging humanitarian treatment for the mental ill. His knowledge is summarized and clarified in many of his medical books, in which he often takes controversial and novel standpoints.
[2] The presented book discusses the causes of mental disorders in relation to the maturation of society and considers factors which can positively contribute to the prevention of psychiatric diseases.
He combines psychological insights similar to Freud's psychodynamic therapy with a medical and somatic approach that Tuke adopted from his studies of medicine.
[4] Living in a time in which mental illness is no longer regarded as the consequence of having committed a religious sin, a more biological basis and environmental foundation of psychiatric diseases was established.
[5] Although there was an increasing interest in mental processes and behavior, until the middle of the 19th century psychology as a scientific study and subject itself was largely disregarded and rather considered to be a branch of philosophy.
[6] Irrevocably, this mindset turned enormously due to five scientific discoveries that enabled the development of modern neurophysiology and are still relevant for today's psychology.
[8] Despite his unsuccessful attempts to quantify behavior, his efforts were taken up by the scientists Ernst Heinrich Weber (1795–18 78) and Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801–1887), aiming to measure the mathematical relationships between the physical magnitudes of external stimuli and the psychological intensities of the resulting sensations.
[9] Meanwhile, the breakthroughs in neuronal structure and physiology (the five most important listed above), evidenced a physical and biological nature of human functioning that can serve as the basis for scientific experiments in studying behavior.
[1] The presented book discusses the causes of mental disorders in relation to the maturation of society and considers factors which can positively contribute to the prevention of psychiatric diseases.
By considering the ecological and social conditions of people, starting in prehistoric times until the late nineteen hundreds, it is analyzed in twelve chapters how these factors and a steady growth in complexity of civilizations contribute to an alleged increase in prevalence of mental illnesses.
[14][3] In the first chapter, Tuke gives a broad overview about the diverse set of factors that he considers to be of vital importance when answering what causes and influences the development of insanity.
[17] As additionally population grew exponentially in these years in urban areas, among others noticed by Thomas Maltus, not enough food could be provided and money was scarce among the lower ranks of society.
[18] All these factors increased poverty and malnutrition and may explain the high prevalence of insane people among the lower working classes of British Society.
Tuke was among the first scientists to recognize that emotional problems and general life satisfaction highly influence the mental health of a person, disregarding his societal rank.
Tuke explains, that this kind of depression interferes with normal cognitive functioning and additionally, often leads to the consume of drugs and thus indirectly precipitates insanity.
[3] Another consequence of the industrial revolution in the 18th century was the increased number of hours per day that people belonging to the working class had to absolve with only little payment.
Excessive as well as deprived education, the increasing acceptance of drug consume, and the competitive spirit rising in the course of history are claimed to be among the major causes of insanity.
[3] According to Tuke, the prevalence of insanity in prehistoric times was the lowest because people were living in uncultivated tribes and were not interested in modern education.
He is convinced, that alone these today's statistics yield enough ground to conclude that insanity is determined by the modern civilized society of industrialized Britain.
[27] He is aware that the dissatisfaction of life caused by the bad living and working conditions prove additionally counteractive to mental health and facilitate the intake of stimulants and the development of intemperate habits which only further exacerbate their misery.
On the other hand, other parts of the higher classes are undereducated and their daily livings circle around the possession of luxury goods and to fulfil beauty standards.
[3] Next to the general physical conditions, he also points to the importance of a morally acceptable way of living by avoiding political and religious fanaticism and mysticism, "Mental safety will be greatly increased by pursuing that middle course between them with an honest appreciation of the laws of emotions".
[3] Children should be adequately thought and formed according to religious moral norms and provided with knowledge, to assure a healthy cerebral development.
[29] As society decreases social pressure and diminished the gap between the rich and the poor, there is hope for the future to prevent the unfavorable trend civilization is heading to.
His contemporaries often regarded him as a "scientific sponge", gathering already existing knowledge about mental illnesses and aligning the findings with his social and societal observations.
[31] Although he often focused on novel and rather uncommon phenomena, he was largely accepted and appreciated by leading British psychiatrists, neurologists and psychologists, including Jean-Marie Charcot, Hippolyte Bernheim and Victor Horsley with which he worked on the Dictionary of Psychological medicine.
During his time when he conducted a new course on psychological medicine at York Medical School, he also published several case studies and notes on psychopathological patients which he observed in striking detail.
[35] Together with Dr. John Bucknill, his medical colleague, he agreed upon writing the well-known Manual of Psychological Medicine, in which he discusses the classification, causes and the different forms of insanity.
Among an international group consisting of 128 authors, Tuke analyses and discusses in 68 sections many of the complex social, cognitive and professional dimensions of nineteen century's psychiatry.