Marilyn Charles

Mysticism and Madness: A Matter of Perspective?

April 28, 2026 Marilyn Charles

In contrast to organically driven models of distress and disease, psychoanalysis shows that psychotic symptoms tell a story that cannot otherwise be told. The roots of madness are best understood in relation to the intergenerational transmission of trauma that impedes development in spite of otherwise good parenting. Such data invite us to consider ‘madness’ as a socially constructed...