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Originally published as an essay in The Montreal Review, this book first summarizes the numerous historical theories on the cause of mental illness—from complex brain disorders to childhood emotional trauma to chemical imbalances. Deviating from the theories of his predecessors, Wylie maintains that severe psychiatric conditions are not a distortion of emotion but an excessively intensifying repetition of ordinary social emotions. The book explores mental disorders against the backdrop of human evolution. The fears that emerged as the earliest primates began to engage in social interaction still permeate society today as a shared emotional heritage and may manifest as obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and panic disorders. More recent evolutionary developments, such as biases and individual ambition, may contribute to the symptoms of conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
The author provides a protracted, sometimes convoluted discussion of human evolution in terms of physical characteristics, cognition, and psychosocial development. He includes excerpts from famous philosophers, poets, and novelists to vividly depict mental illness and characterize the human condition. He also references the works of historically renowned scientists and leading contemporary mental health experts to thoroughly lay the foundation for his theories. Wylie uses a study of human evolution to provide the historical background for humanity’s current plight and to inject hope for an ascent to collective consciousness. This book is a curious blend of philosophy and science, religion and Darwinism, history and theory. Interspersed throughout are colorful AI-generated illustrations that capture the majestically spiritual and academically scientific tone of this work, showcasing their unique capacity to express complex ideas visually.
A 2024 Eric Hoffer Book Award Grand Prize Short List book, E-Book Nonfiction Honorable Mention, and a da Vinci Eye Finalist