Thomas Szasz: The Function of Psychiatry

Defining "medicalization" as the perception of nonmedical conditions as medical problems and nondiseases as diseases, Thomas Szasz has devoted much of his career to exposing the dangers of "medicalizing" the conditions of some who simply refuse to conform to society's expectations. Szasz argues that modern psychiatry's tireless ambition to explain the human condition has led to the treatment of life's difficulties and oddities as clinical illnesses rather than as humanity revealed in its fullness.
This collection of impassioned essays, published between 1973 and 2006, chronicles the author's long campaign against the orthodoxies of psychiatry. From "Medicine to Magic" to "Medicine as Social Control," the book delves into the fascinating history of medicalization, including "The Discovery of Drug Addiction," "Persecutions for Witchcraft and Drugcraft," and "Food Abuse and Foodaholism." In a society that has little tolerance for those who live outside its rules, Dr. Szasz's writings are as relevant today as ever.

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window by Richard de Dale We speak of forgotten sins to boast and pass the time, With laughter in our mouths our souls attempt sublime, Is confession the only cure for ignorant despair? A public cry for absolution fills the air, Thus man in consolation begs forgiveness fair.   Picture source  unknown   Poetry blogger (all poetry and art work not credited is possession of this blogger) 
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