on madness: an inquiry into margins and emotions

Living through times of revolution forced us to contemplate the place of emotions in public life and the diverse psychological states that come with deeply turbulent every- day lives. Margins is a theme that runs through the course. Together we will explore how margins are drawn and contribute to dichotomies that govern our emotional life- the sane/ insane, normal/abnormal, public/private, personal/political, mad/creative. Looking at representations of madness both by “insider” and “outsider” artists, we let those who occupy the margins tell us about our very societies.

The course is inspired by enquiries such as that of Sara Ahmed’s (The Cultural Politics of Emotion), of Ann Cvetkovich (Depression: A public feeling; An Archive of Feelings) and by queer theory’s attention to affects, margins and failures. This means that we locate experiences of the psyche within wider socio-politics. For example, we ask why certain mental disorders are more prominent at certain points, how they are articulated in gendered terms and are connected to political histories of exploitation and rebellion.

The theme of healing journeys deepens our understanding of the body-psyche- politics relation. We look at diverse institutional, behavioural, creative and spiritual histories of healing and the attempts to reclaim madness itself. During the course we will use a variety of audio visual media in addition to texts. Poetry - spoken word or poetry installations particularly- is focal to this course’s mode of enquiry. Our 10 week long sessions offer the opportunity to reflect and connect together in a protective environment while working out how the personal can be political.

what to expect

To attend at least 80% of the classes

To be open to bringing personal experiences to a safe trusted group

To be protective of yourself and others by identifying triggers and safe ways of responding to them

To contribute to formulating research questions and research directions

To commit to weekly exercises beyond the classroom

why apply

To understand how some of your emotional experiences connect to wider socio-political histories

To learn about the connection between trauma, the body and emotions

To enjoy expressing emotions through a creative medium in a collective setting

To enquire about the history of madness and the diverse trajectories of healing

To reflect on writing histories of revolution from the perspective of the affective and emotional