Madness: The Invention of an Idea – The First Exploration of Insanity as a Social Construct and Critical Break from Freud (Harper Perennial Modern Thought)

Michel Foucault’s first exploration of insanity as a social construct—and his debut work of criticism, published nearly a decade before Madness and Civilization—Madness offers an invaluable lens through which to observe the seminal social critic’s philosophical evolution. Previously published as Mental Illness and Psychology, this exciting and accessible new edition offers unique insight into both Foucault’s early engagement with the psychoanalytic tradition and his critical break from Freud, giving readers a crucial look at the thinking that prefigured The History of Sexuality, The Archeology of Knowledge, and more.