First published 2007
Daniel Smith investigates the phenomenon of auditory hallucination through both personal experience and historical research. His father heard voices throughout his life, causing deep torment and shame. This family experience drives Smith to examine how society has come to view voice hearing purely as mental illness requiring pharmaceutical treatment. He argues this medical approach ignores the rich history of voices in human culture and their connection to faith and creativity. Smith traces famous voice hearers across time, from Moses and Mohammed to Joan of Arc and William Blake, showing how these experiences shaped religion and art. He challenges readers to reconsider whether voices represent only biochemical malfunction or something more complex about human consciousness. The book draws from psychology, neurology, anthropology, and literature to build its case. Smith discovers that some people learn to coexist peacefully with their voices rather than suppress them. His exploration reveals how modern medical assumptions may harm voice hearers by dismissing the personal meaning of their experiences.
Genres: psychology, medical, anthropology, religion, non-fiction, biography-memoir, history-of-medicine, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-research, personal-experience
272 pages · ebook · Penguin Press
Content warnings: mental-illness