NCJ Number
223011
Date Published
2008
Length
202 pages
Annotation
Consisting of essays, the purpose of this book is to provide an authoritative and readable review of the relationship between madness and crime.
Abstract
This book seeks to reflect on central elements of a field that continues to perplex and challenge, drawing upon a range of disciplines and approaches, the field of madness and crime. The book consists of essays, divided into four unequal parts: on the nature of madness, on madness as genius, on the detention of the mad, and on the links between madness and crime. The essays are about selected features of madness, or aspects that have relevance to contemporary society. There is a slant towards the criminological. The intent is to reflect on the field that continues to perplex and challenge. In Part 1, the question is about madness itself; what it is, and what some of the main considerations given to it are. Part 2 offers a short discussion on madness, genius, and creativity. Part 3 is about compulsion, an issue that has largely disappeared from public debate. Lastly, part 4 is about the links with crime. The interest is focused on the links with crime and which particular crimes are linked to which types of disorder. Each section focuses on selected features of madness which have relevance to contemporary society. The aim is not to provide a comprehensive review of the literature, but to reflect on central elements of a field that continues to perplex and challenge. References and indexes