Abstract

This work is a theoretical reflection on the implications of modern language theory for the classification and treatment of madness. Using a structuralist perspective, the text argues that psychotherapy is an impossible task because truth is bound to language in the psycho/social realm. Therefore, it argues, the classification of mental disorders is a political, rather than medical or scientific, endeavour. This book claims that instead of being a branch of medicine which alleviates individual suffering, the mental health field is a de facto socializing force shaping individuals to society's standards.