Explaining that delusions are not flights of fancy but psychological techniques for dealing with reality, Victoria Shepherd presents a selection of cases recorded over the past 600 years. With examples including a clockmaker in revolutionary France who was convinced he’d been beheaded and a woman in 1920s Paris who constructed her life around the belief that the king of England was in love with her, the narrative picks out common threads such as facing a reversal of fortune or managing conflicting feelings to explore the nature of the phenomenon.
A curious history of the strange, wonderful and sometimes terrifying worlds created by our minds.
'An utterly engrossing book.' ZOE WILLIAMS
For centuries we've dismissed delusions as something for doctors to sort out behind locked doors. But delusions are more than just bizarre quirks - they hold the key to collective anxieties and traumas.
In this groundbreaking history, Victoria Shepherd uncovers stories of delusions from medieval times to the present day and implores us to identify reason in apparent madness.
Discover how the King of France - thinking he was made of glass - was terrified he might shatter... and he wasn't alone...
Uncover the peculiar case of the dozens of Victorian women who tried to convince their physicians that they were, in fact, dead.
And learn how after the Emperor met his end at the Battle of Waterloo, an epidemic of 'Napoleons' piled into France's asylums.
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https://www.psbooks.co.uk/a-history-of-delusions542818A History of Delusionshttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542818_media-0.jpg8.998.99GBPInStock/History/History/Categories/General History/Gift Ideas/Categories/History Gift Books/Gift Ideas/Categories/View All Gift Books/Gift Ideas/Categories/Gifts Under £10/Gift Ideas/Categories/Gifts Under £15/Email Landing Pages/Books of the Month/Almost Gone/Almost Gone History/Almost Gone/Almost Gone Non-FictionExplaining that delusions are not flights of fancy but psychological techniques for dealing with reality, Victoria Shepherd presents a selection of cases recorded over the past 600 years. With examples including a clockmaker in revolutionary France who was convinced he’d been beheaded and a woman in 1920s Paris who constructed her life around the belief that the king of England was in love with her, the narrative picks out common threads such as facing a reversal of fortune or managing conflicting feelings to explore the nature of the phenomenon. Hardback00https://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542818_media-1.jpghttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542818_media-2.jpgadd-to-cartrrp_info:£16.99productId:177730bic_code:HBTB, JM, JMS, JMT, MBX, PDZ, VSPHBTB, JM, JMS, JMT, MBX, PDZ, VSP£16.99Victoria ShepherdGeneral220x144mmOneworldNoHardbackSocial & Cultural
