The Problem of Gauguin's Therapist

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. The author believes that psychotherapy is the reduction of the extraordinary to the ordinary. He illustrates his thesis by juxtaposing a contemporary example of psychology's role in resolving social conflict with the historical example of the painter Gauguin. This comparison highlights the inadequacy of employing psychology to resolve conflicts between the individual and society.