PS 345 - Psychology & Society in Paris
This course explores the history and development of psychology in Paris within the context of the city and surrounding society, from the end of the 18th to the early 20th century. We will compare the foundational work being done in Paris to what was being practiced in Vienna, as well in the United States at this time. The course will begin with a discussion of French psychology’s precursors like Philippe Pinel with the beginnings of classification of mental disorders and the development of what we now call “moral therapy.” The course will also examine pitfalls of early practices like phrenology (practice brought to France in the early 19th century by its founder Franz Joseph Gall and largely diffused thereafter). This work was highly contested by the anthropologist Paul Broca whose work in turn influenced the founding fathers of French psychology. The course will examine key actors and concepts, like Théodule-Armand Ribot, and Jean-Martin Charcot whose foundational work focused on pathology, and difficulty with language, or Pierre Janet, to whom we can attribute the theory of “structural dissociation.” We will also consider the role of institutions, like French public hospitals, the National Research Institute (CNRS) and the Collège de France, each having performed and continuing to play a fundamental role in the development and practice of French psychology. An important example of which being early research performed at the Salpêtrière hospital involving the study of “hysteria” and hypnosis, work which attracted Sigmund Freud.
Visits to: Collège de France, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, moulages de P. Broca, MNHN
Trigger Warning: Learning is risk taking therefore it can be life changing. The content and discussion in this course will necessarily explore human sexuality, personal behavior and experience, every week. Much of it may be emotionally and intellectually challenging to engage with. The faculty member will flag especially graphic or intense content that discusses or represents human sexuality, personal behavior, in literature and art, and will do their best to make this classroom a space where everyone can engage bravely, empathetically, and thoughtfully with difficult content every week.
Syllabus Coming Soon!