Papers by Mariana Labarca Pinto
Bajo la Lupa, Subdirección de Investigación, Servicio Nacional del Patrimonio Cultural. https://www.investigacion.patrimoniocultural.gob.cl/publicaciones/ el-ejemplar-de-acerca-de-la-materia-medicinal-de-dioscorides-conservado-por-la, 2023
Este artículo explora las formas de lectura de los libros de medicina en Chile durante el siglo x... more Este artículo explora las formas de lectura de los libros de medicina en Chile durante el siglo xviii y principios del xix a partir del análisis de la marginalia contenida en el ejemplar de Acerca de la materia medicinal de Dioscórides, traducido y comentado por Andrés Laguna, que resguarda la Biblioteca Patrimonial Recoleta Dominica (BPRD). Luego de reseñar la obra e identificarla en registros chilenos del siglo xviii, se examina qué significa su presencia en la BPRD. Se sugiere que las marcas de lectura revelan un interés probablemente vinculado al ejercicio del arte de la sanación.
Fragmentos de mundo. Objetos y artefactos americanos en tránsito, siglos XVI-XX, 2023
el tránsito de los saberes médicos. adquirir, consultar y codificar libros de divulgación de cono... more el tránsito de los saberes médicos. adquirir, consultar y codificar libros de divulgación de conocimiento médico en chile durante el siglo xviii 105 mariana labarca*
Nuevo Mundo Mundos Nuevos, 2022
Francisca Paula de Azúa solicitó en 1780 la interdicción de su marido Ramón Cortés denunciándolo ... more Francisca Paula de Azúa solicitó en 1780 la interdicción de su marido Ramón Cortés denunciándolo como incapaz de administrar sus bienes producto de la demencia causada por su constante embriaguez. Paralelamente recurrió a la justicia eclesiástica para solicitar el divorcio por los mismos motivos. Ambos expedientes constituyen la documentación en la que este artículo se adentra proponiendo un ejercicio biográfico que rescata la experiencia de una mujer de la élite criolla del Chile tardo colonial marcada por la melancolía y el dolor provocado por el maltrato reiterado a que la sometía el marido. Su historia se presenta como un caso de agencia femenina en un contexto particularmente adverso, el de la convivencia con un marido cuya constante embriaguez y consecuente conducta violenta era entendida por sus cercanos como una enfermedad mental. Este artículo se propone explorar las distintas capas que componen la historia de Francisca Paula para buscar los rastros de su biografía emocional, indagando en qué pudo sentir, cómo significaron ella y su entorno esos sentimientos, y cómo estas emociones aparecen representadas e instrumentalizadas para litigar una causa judicial. Recurriendo al enfoque biográfico, el artículo pretende rescatar su individualidad y subjetividad, pero también reflexionar sobre la experiencia vital femenina de los últimos decenios de la colonia.
Bibliotecas de la Monarquía Hispánica en la primera globalización (Siglos XVI-XVIII), eds. Natalia Maillard Álvarez y Manuel F. Fernández Chaves. Zaragoza, Prensa de la Universidad de Zaragoza, 2021
Anuario Colombiano de Historia Social y de la Cultura, 2020
Mariana Labarca
https://revistas.unal.edu.co/index.php/achsc/article/view/86169
Este artículo pre... more Mariana Labarca
https://revistas.unal.edu.co/index.php/achsc/article/view/86169
Este artículo pretende dar cuenta de las posibilidades analíticas del estudio de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile durante el siglo XVIII. A partir del estudio de inventarios de bibliotecas privadas, inventarios comerciales y documentación de aduanas, se exploran los vínculos entre la disponibilidad de títulos y los gustos de los propietarios/lectores. Con este objetivo, se identifican las principales características de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile, para luego examinar los perfiles de sus propietarios, los posibles usos de estos libros y su vinculación con las dinámicas del flujo comercial. El artículo da cuenta de la creciente visibilidad alcanzada por los libros de medicina, sugiriendo que la disponibilidad de títulos no estuvo supeditada únicamente al flujo comercial, sino que fue también determinada por los propietarios, que ejercieron un rol activo configurándose como público lector específico y creando vías de acceso alternativas.
Anuario Colombiano de Historia Social y de la Cultura , 2020
Este artículo pretende dar cuenta de las posibilidades analíticas del estudio de los libros de me... more Este artículo pretende dar cuenta de las posibilidades analíticas del estudio de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile durante el siglo xviii. A partir del estudio de inventarios de bibliotecas privadas, inventarios comerciales y documentación de aduanas, se exploran los vínculos entre la disponibilidad de títulos y los gustos de los propietarios/lectores. Con este objetivo, se identifican las principales características de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile, para luego examinar los perfiles de sus propietarios, los posibles usos de estos libros y su vinculación con las dinámicas del flujo comercial. El artículo da cuenta de la creciente visibilidad alcanzada por los libros de medicina, sugiriendo que la disponibilidad de títulos no estuvo supeditada únicamente al flujo comercial, sino que fue también determinada por los propietarios, que ejercieron un rol activo configurándose como público lector específico y creando vías de acceso alternativas
Contrarreforma Católica, implicancias sociales y culturales: miradas interdisciplinarias, Macarena Cordero y Jorge Cid (eds.), Cuarto Propio, 2019
Asclepio, 2019
Labarca Pinto, Mariana (2019), "Los espacios de la locura en la Toscana del siglo XVIII: Estrateg... more Labarca Pinto, Mariana (2019), "Los espacios de la locura en la Toscana del siglo XVIII: Estrategias y negociaciones para enfrentar la enfermedad mental", Asclepio, 71(1): p250. https://doi.org/10.3989/asclepio.2019.02. RESUMEN: Este trabajo estudia los diferentes espacios en que aparece registrada la locura en el Gran Ducado de Toscana durante el siglo XVIII. A partir de la revisión de expedientes de interdicción por incapacidad mental, archivos de justicia criminal, archivos de policía y registros hospitalarios, propone una aproximación a la historia de la locura basada en el análisis comprensivo de las vinculaciones entre las distintas instancias en que se debatió sobre sus características, se evaluaron sus consecuencias y se elabo-raron estrategias para hacerle frente. Este enfoque revela que las alternativas existentes para sobrellevar la enfermedad mental funcionaban como respuestas temporales y flexibles que constituían una red de instancias que podían ser recorridas de distintas maneras. Sugiere que el estudio de estos itinerarios, sus actores y lenguajes resulta fundamental para comprender en toda su magnitud la forma en que fueron concebidas y enfrentadas las perturbaciones mentales en el siglo XVIII. En particular, sostiene que su funcionamiento dio pie a un debate social sobre los indicadores y significados de la locura que serviría de insumo para la sistematización del conocimiento psiquiátrico. PALABRAS CLAVE: locura; interdicción; historia social de la locura; pensamiento médico; instituciones asilares. Copyright: © 2019 CSIC. Este es un artículo de acceso abierto distribuido bajo los términos de la licencia de uso y distribución Creative Commons Reconocimiento 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0).
Este estudio explora las conexiones que pueden trazarse entre emociones, locura y familia a parti... more Este estudio explora las conexiones que pueden trazarse entre emociones, locura y familia a partir de algunos aspectos del debate historiográfico reciente, con el propósito de reflexionar sobre las posibilidades que entrega la introducción de las emociones como categoría de análisis histórico. El estudio revisa el debate historiográfico que posicionó a la familia y el espacio doméstico en el centro del análisis de la historia de la locura, giro que significó una apertura hacia la dimensión experiencial. A partir de este debate, se sugiere un enfoque que considere el rol atribuido y ejercido por las emociones en la interpretación, experiencia y respuestas a la desviación mental, proponiendo además cruces entre la escala local y la dimensión transnacional. Aproximarse a la historia de la locura a través del enfoque de las emociones permite una mayor comprensión de los efectos contextuales y relacionales que operan en la configuración social de los límites entre sanidad mental y locura.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
Este estudio explora las conexiones que pueden trazarse entre emociones, locura y familia a parti... more Este estudio explora las conexiones que pueden trazarse entre emociones, locura y familia a partir de algunos aspectos del debate historiográfico reciente, con el propósito de reflexionar sobre las posibilidades que entrega la introducción de las emociones como categoría de análisis histórico. El estudio revisa el debate historiográfico que posicionó a la familia y el espacio doméstico en el centro del análisis de la historia de la locura, giro que significó una apertura hacia la dimensión experiencial. A partir de este debate, se sugiere un enfoque que considere el rol atribuido y ejercido por las emociones en la interpretación, experiencia y respuestas a la desviación mental, proponiendo además cruces entre la escala local y la dimensión transnacional. Aproximarse a la historia de la locura a través del enfoque de las emociones permite una mayor comprensión de los efectos contextuales y relacionales que operan en la configuración social de los límites entre sanidad mental y locura.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
Historical Reflections/Reflexions Historiques, Vol. 41, no. 2 (2015), pp. 19-36
This article explores the role attributed to disturbed emotions in the understanding of old-age m... more This article explores the role attributed to disturbed emotions in the understanding of old-age mental incapacity in eighteenth-century Tuscany. It claims that interdiction procedures provided a fertile forum for the negotiation of what constituted mental incapacity in old age, which progressively involved a discussion on accepted or proper emotional reactions. Delving into the language employed in interdiction narratives, it argues that references to disturbed emotional states were increasingly employed as a means of providing evidence of disordered states of mind. It also suggests that the constituent elements of mental incapacity and the emotional reactions deemed indicative of its presence were dependent on the familial and sociocultural context in which the behavior was identified. Interdictions thus reveal the articulation of a collective, culturally embedded language of mental incapacity that was profoundly entrenched in the formulation of behavioral norms and the shaping of standards of emotional reaction.
1NTR0DUCCJ6N En mayo de 1751 ~os cuii~dos de Anto?i~. Panizzi, habitante de la Localidad roscana ... more 1NTR0DUCCJ6N En mayo de 1751 ~os cuii~dos de Anto?i~. Panizzi, habitante de la Localidad roscana de Fucecch•o, e~Vlaron una pet1c!o~ al !,'Tan duque de Toscana paro
Base de dados : LILACS. Pesquisa : 527062 [Identificador único]. Referências encontradas : 1 [ref... more Base de dados : LILACS. Pesquisa : 527062 [Identificador único]. Referências encontradas : 1 [refinar]. Mostrando: 1 .. 1 no formato [Detalhado]. página 1 de 1, 1 / 1, LILACS, seleciona. para imprimir. Fotocópia. experimental, Documentos relacionados. Id: 527062. ...
Talks by Mariana Labarca Pinto
This paper examines the strategic position of emotions in the understanding of mental incapacity,... more This paper examines the strategic position of emotions in the understanding of mental incapacity, drawing from interdiction procedures carried out in 18th-century Tuscany. Aiming at a gender comparison that intertwines family and legal languages, the paper focuses on interdiction procedures involving men and women whose mental incapacity was said to be caused or explained by aging. It argues that emotions played a leading role in the perception, identification and experience of old-age mental incapacity.
The paper examines the expressions used by interdiction petitioners (close family members) and supporting testimonies (predominantly lay) to describe disturbed mental states of old people, in close connection to the narratives of the alleged incompetents themselves. It also addresses issues such as the conception of gender-specific and age-specific emotions.
Overall, the analysis reveals that from the second half of the 18th century, increasing attention was paid to emotional states as a way to fundament an interdiction petition. Descriptions denoting emotional distress, with concepts such as inquietudine (restlessness, both physical and emotional), umore stravagante (extravagant humour) or carattere irregolare (irregular character), came to be particularly meaningful. The alleged mentally incompetent were said to suffer changes of mood for no reason, be driven by their fits of anger, or follow their love passions against social and gender norms. Shaped differently according to age and gender, these descriptions of distressed emotional states used as indicators of an altered state of mind, bring to the fore conceptions about deviance and insanity embedded in cultural understandings of what the emotional life should be. So long as the emotional worlds were made visible, 18th century interdiction procedures speak, in this way, of the cultural shaping of emotional standards that would ascribe values, and would eventually medicalize extreme love passions, abrupt changes of mood, unpredicted violent outbursts, to name some.
"This paper deals with interdiction procedures in 18th century Tuscany, framing them as a legal m... more "This paper deals with interdiction procedures in 18th century Tuscany, framing them as a legal mechanism to control deviant individuals that sheds light on the shaping of new understandings of mental incapacity engendered by a negotiated process between families, the state and the law. To do so, this paper uses as case-study the life of Lorenzo Baldinotti, an 18th century Florentine interdicted by the Tuscan Court of Wards (the Magistrato dei Pupilli et Adulti) on the grounds of insanity several times during his life, disclosing the intricate relationship between, on the one hand, the family needs regarding and experience of insanity, and on the other hand, the state’s response.
Almost invariably initiated with the request of a family member, interdictions functioned as a mechanism used at will by the Tuscan families to control deviant family members. In this regard, the paper argues that interdiction procedures provided for the settlement of a combined welfare provision for the mentally disabled with shared responsibilities between the families and the state. In so doing, interdictions offer the grounds for an alternative narrative to that of confinement and restraint.
Legally speaking, interdictions granted the state’s intervention to prevent the financial mismanagement of a mentally incompetent member. Nevertheless, the 18th century records of the Florentine Court of Wards show that the perception of mental incapacity surpassed purely economic concerns, and progressively placed the accent in the emotional effects this deviated relatives produced in the family. Mental disturbances were constructed upon a family gaze that privileged private insights into the phenomenon of mental disturbance over the use of determinate legal or medical categories.
The paper claims that in the legal context set out by the Magistrato dei Pupilli, what really mattered was not the specific kind of mental disturbance suffered by the denounced, but the nature of that disturbance as seen by the families, from their experience, with their nuances and their language. This explains why, on the whole we do not see a progressive use of medical testimonies in the interdiction procedures throughout the 18th century, so long as the Tuscan state was not looking for medical categories of mental incapacity.
"
PhD Dissertation by Mariana Labarca Pinto
Scholarship on the history of early modern madness agrees on the fact that madness was largely a ... more Scholarship on the history of early modern madness agrees on the fact that madness was largely a family matter during the period. Not only confinement was used as a last resort, but the range of public provisions to respond to mental afflictions were eminently temporary. Furthermore, although medical practitioners developed increasingly relevant contributions in the field of diagnosis and treatment of mental afflictions, during the eighteenth century madness was still primarily identified, experienced and managed by the families. Building on these arguments, this dissertation is concerned with how early modern understandings of and responses to madness were negotiated between families, medical and legal professionals, authorities and the communities.
Intersecting the history of madness and medicine with legal history, the history of the family and gender and the history of emotions, the dissertation examines the spaces in which madness made an appearance in eighteenth-century Tuscany, paying particular attention to the circulation of languages, both across legal and institutional spaces, and between lay society, medical practitioners and magistrates. Through its study of the itineraries of madness, the dissertation suggests that litigants and witnesses adapted their notions of mental affliction and changed their language according to each space of appearance. The core of the discussion is based on interdiction procedures, the civil law inquiries into mental capacity handled by the Magistrato dei Pupilli et Adulti, which are examined against criminal procedures, hospital records, medical consultations, and records of the police.
The dissertation argues that the Tuscan legal framework provided open and deliberately vague categories of madness and mental incapacity derived from a long legal tradition which remained mostly unchanged. However, while in terms of legal vocabulary long-term continuities seem to predominate, eighteenth-century records show a shift in the meanings of madness, opening to new social concerns and to new codifications of familial conflict. Initially bound primarily to patrimony and financial mismanagement, the understandings of madness became increasingly open to the emotional and relational dimensions of insanity, suggesting an interesting interplay between lay and medical notions of deviance.
Books by Mariana Labarca Pinto
Routledge, 2021
Drawing on a wide range of sources including interdiction procedures, records of criminal justice... more Drawing on a wide range of sources including interdiction procedures, records of criminal justice, documentation from mental hospitals, and medical literature, this book provides a comprehensive study of the spaces in which madness was recorded in Tuscany during the eighteenth century. It proposes the notion of itineraries of madness, which, intended as an heuristic device, enables us to examine records of madness across the different spaces where it was disclosed, casting light on the connections between how madness was understood and experienced, the language employed to describe it, and public and private responses devised to cope with it. Placing the emotional experience of the Tuscan families at the core of its analysis, this book stresses the central role of families in the shaping of new understandings of madness and how lay notions interacted with legal and medical knowledge. It argues that perceptions of madness in the eighteenth century were closely connected to new cultural concerns regarding family relationships and family roles, which resulted in a shift in the meanings of and attitudes to mental disturbances.
Uploads
Papers by Mariana Labarca Pinto
https://revistas.unal.edu.co/index.php/achsc/article/view/86169
Este artículo pretende dar cuenta de las posibilidades analíticas del estudio de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile durante el siglo XVIII. A partir del estudio de inventarios de bibliotecas privadas, inventarios comerciales y documentación de aduanas, se exploran los vínculos entre la disponibilidad de títulos y los gustos de los propietarios/lectores. Con este objetivo, se identifican las principales características de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile, para luego examinar los perfiles de sus propietarios, los posibles usos de estos libros y su vinculación con las dinámicas del flujo comercial. El artículo da cuenta de la creciente visibilidad alcanzada por los libros de medicina, sugiriendo que la disponibilidad de títulos no estuvo supeditada únicamente al flujo comercial, sino que fue también determinada por los propietarios, que ejercieron un rol activo configurándose como público lector específico y creando vías de acceso alternativas.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
Talks by Mariana Labarca Pinto
The paper examines the expressions used by interdiction petitioners (close family members) and supporting testimonies (predominantly lay) to describe disturbed mental states of old people, in close connection to the narratives of the alleged incompetents themselves. It also addresses issues such as the conception of gender-specific and age-specific emotions.
Overall, the analysis reveals that from the second half of the 18th century, increasing attention was paid to emotional states as a way to fundament an interdiction petition. Descriptions denoting emotional distress, with concepts such as inquietudine (restlessness, both physical and emotional), umore stravagante (extravagant humour) or carattere irregolare (irregular character), came to be particularly meaningful. The alleged mentally incompetent were said to suffer changes of mood for no reason, be driven by their fits of anger, or follow their love passions against social and gender norms. Shaped differently according to age and gender, these descriptions of distressed emotional states used as indicators of an altered state of mind, bring to the fore conceptions about deviance and insanity embedded in cultural understandings of what the emotional life should be. So long as the emotional worlds were made visible, 18th century interdiction procedures speak, in this way, of the cultural shaping of emotional standards that would ascribe values, and would eventually medicalize extreme love passions, abrupt changes of mood, unpredicted violent outbursts, to name some.
Almost invariably initiated with the request of a family member, interdictions functioned as a mechanism used at will by the Tuscan families to control deviant family members. In this regard, the paper argues that interdiction procedures provided for the settlement of a combined welfare provision for the mentally disabled with shared responsibilities between the families and the state. In so doing, interdictions offer the grounds for an alternative narrative to that of confinement and restraint.
Legally speaking, interdictions granted the state’s intervention to prevent the financial mismanagement of a mentally incompetent member. Nevertheless, the 18th century records of the Florentine Court of Wards show that the perception of mental incapacity surpassed purely economic concerns, and progressively placed the accent in the emotional effects this deviated relatives produced in the family. Mental disturbances were constructed upon a family gaze that privileged private insights into the phenomenon of mental disturbance over the use of determinate legal or medical categories.
The paper claims that in the legal context set out by the Magistrato dei Pupilli, what really mattered was not the specific kind of mental disturbance suffered by the denounced, but the nature of that disturbance as seen by the families, from their experience, with their nuances and their language. This explains why, on the whole we do not see a progressive use of medical testimonies in the interdiction procedures throughout the 18th century, so long as the Tuscan state was not looking for medical categories of mental incapacity.
"
PhD Dissertation by Mariana Labarca Pinto
Intersecting the history of madness and medicine with legal history, the history of the family and gender and the history of emotions, the dissertation examines the spaces in which madness made an appearance in eighteenth-century Tuscany, paying particular attention to the circulation of languages, both across legal and institutional spaces, and between lay society, medical practitioners and magistrates. Through its study of the itineraries of madness, the dissertation suggests that litigants and witnesses adapted their notions of mental affliction and changed their language according to each space of appearance. The core of the discussion is based on interdiction procedures, the civil law inquiries into mental capacity handled by the Magistrato dei Pupilli et Adulti, which are examined against criminal procedures, hospital records, medical consultations, and records of the police.
The dissertation argues that the Tuscan legal framework provided open and deliberately vague categories of madness and mental incapacity derived from a long legal tradition which remained mostly unchanged. However, while in terms of legal vocabulary long-term continuities seem to predominate, eighteenth-century records show a shift in the meanings of madness, opening to new social concerns and to new codifications of familial conflict. Initially bound primarily to patrimony and financial mismanagement, the understandings of madness became increasingly open to the emotional and relational dimensions of insanity, suggesting an interesting interplay between lay and medical notions of deviance.
Books by Mariana Labarca Pinto
https://revistas.unal.edu.co/index.php/achsc/article/view/86169
Este artículo pretende dar cuenta de las posibilidades analíticas del estudio de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile durante el siglo XVIII. A partir del estudio de inventarios de bibliotecas privadas, inventarios comerciales y documentación de aduanas, se exploran los vínculos entre la disponibilidad de títulos y los gustos de los propietarios/lectores. Con este objetivo, se identifican las principales características de los libros de medicina que circularon en Chile, para luego examinar los perfiles de sus propietarios, los posibles usos de estos libros y su vinculación con las dinámicas del flujo comercial. El artículo da cuenta de la creciente visibilidad alcanzada por los libros de medicina, sugiriendo que la disponibilidad de títulos no estuvo supeditada únicamente al flujo comercial, sino que fue también determinada por los propietarios, que ejercieron un rol activo configurándose como público lector específico y creando vías de acceso alternativas.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
This study explores the connexions that can be drawn between emotions, madness and the family through a discussion of relevant historiographical debates, aiming to propose a critical reflection on the possibilities of introducing emotions as a category of historical analysis. It examines the debate that placed the family and the domestic space at the centre of the analysis of the history of madness, a turn that resulted in the introduction of the dimension of experience. Building on this debate, the study suggests an approach to the history of madness that considers the critical role attributed and played by emotions in the interpretation, experience and responses to mental deviance, reflecting on the interconnections between the local and the transnational dimension. To approach the history of madness through the lens of emotions provides a valuable way to grasp the contextual and relational aspects behind the social configuration of the boundaries between sanity and insanity.
The paper examines the expressions used by interdiction petitioners (close family members) and supporting testimonies (predominantly lay) to describe disturbed mental states of old people, in close connection to the narratives of the alleged incompetents themselves. It also addresses issues such as the conception of gender-specific and age-specific emotions.
Overall, the analysis reveals that from the second half of the 18th century, increasing attention was paid to emotional states as a way to fundament an interdiction petition. Descriptions denoting emotional distress, with concepts such as inquietudine (restlessness, both physical and emotional), umore stravagante (extravagant humour) or carattere irregolare (irregular character), came to be particularly meaningful. The alleged mentally incompetent were said to suffer changes of mood for no reason, be driven by their fits of anger, or follow their love passions against social and gender norms. Shaped differently according to age and gender, these descriptions of distressed emotional states used as indicators of an altered state of mind, bring to the fore conceptions about deviance and insanity embedded in cultural understandings of what the emotional life should be. So long as the emotional worlds were made visible, 18th century interdiction procedures speak, in this way, of the cultural shaping of emotional standards that would ascribe values, and would eventually medicalize extreme love passions, abrupt changes of mood, unpredicted violent outbursts, to name some.
Almost invariably initiated with the request of a family member, interdictions functioned as a mechanism used at will by the Tuscan families to control deviant family members. In this regard, the paper argues that interdiction procedures provided for the settlement of a combined welfare provision for the mentally disabled with shared responsibilities between the families and the state. In so doing, interdictions offer the grounds for an alternative narrative to that of confinement and restraint.
Legally speaking, interdictions granted the state’s intervention to prevent the financial mismanagement of a mentally incompetent member. Nevertheless, the 18th century records of the Florentine Court of Wards show that the perception of mental incapacity surpassed purely economic concerns, and progressively placed the accent in the emotional effects this deviated relatives produced in the family. Mental disturbances were constructed upon a family gaze that privileged private insights into the phenomenon of mental disturbance over the use of determinate legal or medical categories.
The paper claims that in the legal context set out by the Magistrato dei Pupilli, what really mattered was not the specific kind of mental disturbance suffered by the denounced, but the nature of that disturbance as seen by the families, from their experience, with their nuances and their language. This explains why, on the whole we do not see a progressive use of medical testimonies in the interdiction procedures throughout the 18th century, so long as the Tuscan state was not looking for medical categories of mental incapacity.
"
Intersecting the history of madness and medicine with legal history, the history of the family and gender and the history of emotions, the dissertation examines the spaces in which madness made an appearance in eighteenth-century Tuscany, paying particular attention to the circulation of languages, both across legal and institutional spaces, and between lay society, medical practitioners and magistrates. Through its study of the itineraries of madness, the dissertation suggests that litigants and witnesses adapted their notions of mental affliction and changed their language according to each space of appearance. The core of the discussion is based on interdiction procedures, the civil law inquiries into mental capacity handled by the Magistrato dei Pupilli et Adulti, which are examined against criminal procedures, hospital records, medical consultations, and records of the police.
The dissertation argues that the Tuscan legal framework provided open and deliberately vague categories of madness and mental incapacity derived from a long legal tradition which remained mostly unchanged. However, while in terms of legal vocabulary long-term continuities seem to predominate, eighteenth-century records show a shift in the meanings of madness, opening to new social concerns and to new codifications of familial conflict. Initially bound primarily to patrimony and financial mismanagement, the understandings of madness became increasingly open to the emotional and relational dimensions of insanity, suggesting an interesting interplay between lay and medical notions of deviance.