by R. D. Laing
First published 1959
R.D. Laing's groundbreaking work confronts the stark reality of mental illness. Through vivid case studies, we witness patients trapped in the torment of their own fractured identities - the public mask they present to the world, and the raw, unfiltered self within. As Laing unravels the complexities of the "divided self," he illuminates the lived experience of psychosis, challenging us to see madness not as a medical condition, but as the painful, if sometimes necessary, response to the contradictions of the human experience.
Genres: psychology, mental-health, 20th-century, academic
Vibes: dark, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
218 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Pelican/Penguin Books Ltd
Content warnings: mental-illness