Newswise — A new book from a University of Illinois at Chicago scholar examines the progression of obsessive behavior from its religious and secular origins to its present status as a medical and cultural phenomenon.
"Obsession: A History" (University of Chicago Press, 2008) by Lennard Davis, UIC professor of English, offers a narrative featuring wide-ranging perspectives on the history of compulsive behaviors.
Davis writes that we live in an age of obsession. Originally considered the result of demonic possession, obsessive behavior related to one's work or hobbies is now admired while compulsively washing one's hands or avoiding lines on the sidewalk is a dreaded condition.
He also explores a sharp rise in diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder, citing a 600-fold increase over the past 30 years, and the treatment of the disease.
"I want readers to see that psychological diseases have, at least, one long and very significant taproot in culture and society," said Davis, who is also professor of disability and human development and medical education. "Something like obsessive-compulsive disorder isn't just a purely clinical entity, but participates in a complex set of social, cultural, political, and professional issues."
Davis, who is well-known for his disability, literary, and cultural studies, was inspired to explore obsession while conducting research on the difference between literary characters from the 18th and 19th centuries.
He found that many characters from the latter era, featured in works by authors such as Poe, Dostoevsky, Zola, Balzac, and Dickens, were obsessed. Davis set out to investigate the origin of the word and when people began to talk about or label others as being obsessed.
The mid-19th century in England and France was the tipping point, according to Davis.
"Monomania was the operative term, and the more I researched this I began to see that it was a diagnosis that had a popular appeal," he said.
"It seemed to be a hallmark of modernity -- both in culture and in the rise of the professions and specialization."
Davis says it is important to remember that diseases have histories that are relevant to the way they are considered today.
"Psychological diseases can be the dark sister to the qualities that a culture upholds -- in this case, doing or thinking one thing too much can make you famous, or can put you on Prozac, and sometimes both," he said.
"We should always be careful to remember that the line between normality and pathology is a tenuous one, even when we try to make a firewall between them."
A book launch for "Obsession: A History" is scheduled Nov. 13, 5 " 7 p.m. at UIC's Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, 800 S. Halsted St.
For more information about UIC, please visit www.uic.edu.
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