Ballardian Explorations of Phildickian Inner Space
D. Harlan Wilson
July 6, 2026 DOI: 10.4324/9781032687018-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Biographical and historical analysis |
|---|---|
| Topics | Mysticism |
| Keywords | Space punctuation Perspective graphical Term time Interpretation philosophy Epistemology Psychoanalysis |
| Key points | Argues that psychobiographies of Philip K. Dick illustrate the hermeneutic challenges of interpreting a figure whose reality was fluid and performative, and that these accounts reveal the authors' own perspectives. |
Abstract
Dick’s psychobiographies foreground his complex identity, mystical experiences, and struggles with mental health. Psychobiographers like Gregg Rickman, Anthony Peake, Kyle Arnold, and Erik Davis apply varied lenses, from trauma and psychosis to precognition and psychoanalysis; their biotexts occupy a Phildickian asylum mundi that illustrates the hermeneutic challenges of interpreting a figure whose reality was fluid, elusive, and performative. These life-writers search for fixed truths while acknowledging the infinite possibilities within Dick’s lifework. The psychobiographies inevitably reveal aspects about their authors’ perspectives and beliefs.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on mysticism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The mystical mind: probing the biology of religious experience | 2000 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Religious and Mystical Experiences as Artifacts of Temporal Lobe Function: A General Hypothesis | 1983 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Problem of Pure Consciousness: Mysticism and Philosophy | 1993 | Edited collection of essays | |
| Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century | 2020 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mysticism and schizophrenia: A phenomenological exploration of the structure of consciousness in the schizophrenia spectrum disorders. | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |