The British Anti-Psychiatrists

From Institutional Psychiatry to the Counter-Culture, 1960-1971

Nonfiction, History
Cover of the book The British Anti-Psychiatrists by Oisín Wall, Taylor and Francis
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Oisín Wall ISBN: 9781351690966
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Publication: September 13, 2017
Imprint: Routledge Language: English
Author: Oisín Wall
ISBN: 9781351690966
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Publication: September 13, 2017
Imprint: Routledge
Language: English

The British anti-psychiatric group, which formed around R.D. Laing, David Cooper, and Aaron Esterson in the 1960s, burned bright, but briefly, and has left a long legacy. This book follows their practical, social, and theoretical trajectory away from the structured world of institutional psychiatry and into the social chaos of the counter-culture. It explores the rapidly changing landscape of British psychiatry in the mid-Twentieth Century and the apparently structureless organisation of the part of the counter-culture that clustered around the anti-psychiatrists, including the informal power structures that it produced.

The book also problematizes this trajectory, examining how the anti-psychiatrists distanced themselves from institutional psychiatry while building links with some of the most important people in post-war psychiatry and psychoanalysis. The anti-psychiatrists bridged the gap between psychiatry and the counter-culture, and briefly became legitimate voices in both. Wall argues that their synthesis of disparate discourses was one of their strengths, but also contributed to the group’s collapse.

The British Anti-Psychiatrists offers original historical expositions of the Villa 21 experiment and the Anti-University. Finally, it proposes a new reading of anti-psychiatric theory, displacing Laing from his central position and looking at their work as an unfolding conversation within a social network.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The British anti-psychiatric group, which formed around R.D. Laing, David Cooper, and Aaron Esterson in the 1960s, burned bright, but briefly, and has left a long legacy. This book follows their practical, social, and theoretical trajectory away from the structured world of institutional psychiatry and into the social chaos of the counter-culture. It explores the rapidly changing landscape of British psychiatry in the mid-Twentieth Century and the apparently structureless organisation of the part of the counter-culture that clustered around the anti-psychiatrists, including the informal power structures that it produced.

The book also problematizes this trajectory, examining how the anti-psychiatrists distanced themselves from institutional psychiatry while building links with some of the most important people in post-war psychiatry and psychoanalysis. The anti-psychiatrists bridged the gap between psychiatry and the counter-culture, and briefly became legitimate voices in both. Wall argues that their synthesis of disparate discourses was one of their strengths, but also contributed to the group’s collapse.

The British Anti-Psychiatrists offers original historical expositions of the Villa 21 experiment and the Anti-University. Finally, it proposes a new reading of anti-psychiatric theory, displacing Laing from his central position and looking at their work as an unfolding conversation within a social network.

More books from Taylor and Francis

Cover of the book The Career of Cardinal Giovanni Morone (1509-1580) by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Education and Employment in the European Union by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Project Head Start by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Urban Latin America by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Indian Art Worlds in Contention by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book How Survivors of Abuse Relate to God by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Allure of the Incomplete, Imperfect, and Impermanent by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book The Illusion of Accountability in the European Union by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Prosthetic Culture by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book The British Folk Revival by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book British Colonial Policy in the Age of Peel and Russell by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Editing with Final Cut Pro 4 by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Substance Abuse Issues Among Families in Diverse Populations by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book Accounting, Innovation and Inter-Organisational Relationships by Oisín Wall
Cover of the book European Union and Environmental Governance by Oisín Wall
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy