Main description:

Thomas Szasz wrote over thirty books and several hundred articles, replete with mordant criticism of psychiatry, in both scientific and popular periodicals. His works made him arguably one of the world's most recognized psychiatrists, albeit one of the most controversial.

These writings have been translated into several languages and have earned him a worldwide following. Szasz was a man of towering intellect, sweeping historical knowledge, and deep-rooted, mostly libertarian, philosophical beliefs. He wrote with a lucid and acerbic wit, but usually in a way that is accessible to general readers. His books cautioned against the indiscriminate power of psychiatry in courts and in society, and against the apparent rush to medicalize all human folly. They have
spawned an eponymous ideology that has influenced, to various degrees, laws relating to mental health in several countries and states.

This book critically examines the legacy of Thomas Szasz - a man who challenged the very concept of mental illness and questioned several practices of psychiatrists. The book surveys his many contributions including those in psychoanalysis, which are very often overlooked by his critics. While admiring his seminal contribution to the debate, the book will also point to some of his assertions that merit closer scrutiny. Contributors to the book are drawn from various disciplines, including
Psychiatry, Philosophy and Law; and are from various countries including the United States, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Some contributors knew Thomas Szasz personally and spent many hours with him discussing issues he raised in his books and articles.

The book will be fascinating reading for anyone interested in matters of mental health, human rights, and ethics.

Contents:

About the Editors
About the Contributors
C.V. Haldipur, James L. Knoll IV, and Eric v.d. Luft: Introduction
Part I. Intellectual Roots of Szasz's Thought
1: Stephen Wilson: Study on the Szaszophone: Theme and Variations
2: Jan Pols: Leading Up to The Myth of Mental Illness
3: Eric v.d. Luft: Philosophical Influences on Thomas Szasz
4: John Z. Sadler: Conceptual Models of Normative Content in Mental Disorders
Part II. The Concept of Mental Illness
5: George J. Annas: Szasz, Suicide, and Medical Ethics
6: Robert W. Daly: Agency, Mental Illness, and Psychiatry: A Response to Thomas Szasz
7: K.W.M. Fulford: Taking Szasz Seriously and his Critics Too: Thesis, Antithesis, and a Values-Based Synthesis
8: E. Fuller Torrey: Schizophrenia: Sacred Symbol or Achilles Heel
9: James L. Knoll IV: Suicide Prohibition: Shame, Blame, or Social Aim?
10: Jennifer Church: Myths, Projections, and Overextensions: The Conceptual Landscape of Thomas Szasz
11: Mantosh J. Dewan and Eugene A. Kaplan: The Clinical Wisdom of Thomas Szasz
12: Ronald W. Pies: Thomas Szasz and the Language of Mental Illness
Part III. Szasz's Larger Impact
13: Allen Frances: The Myth and Reality of Mental Illness
14: Nancy Nyquist Potter: Reform and Revolution in the Context of Critical Psychiatry and Service-User / Survivor Movements
15: Neil Pickering: Thomas Szasz and the Insanity Defense
16: Marisola Xhelili Ciaccio: Bringing Psychopaths into the Moral Community: Reassessing Agency Cultivation and Social Participation
17: Mona Gupta: Mental Illness is Not a Myth: Epistemic Favoritism in Research Funding
18: Jennifer Radden: Rights, Responsibilities, and Mental Illnesses: A Chronology of the Szasz Decades
19: Thomas Schramme: Szasz's Legacy and Current Challenges in Psychiatry
C.V. Haldipur: Epilogue
Index