Like stated in my blog post “A Better Way To Think About It”, schizophrenia was initially termed in 1911 when the Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Beuler defined it as a “split-mind” disorder. Really, Beuler meant more that a person with schizophrenia suffers from a separation of psychological functions and their emotions and cognitive abilities. The first misuse of the term schizophrenia was published in the Washington Post in 1916 (Lilienfeld, 191). A journalist interviewed then first president of the American Psychological Association Stanley Hall. Hall defined schizophrenia as a way to describe someone who has a split mind such as a Jekyll-Hyde personality. Ironically, Robert Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is probably the most famous case of split personality disorder in popular literature. The Washington Post’s article’s influence over the mass media with this popular misconception is unclear but by 1933 the myth had found it’s way into pop culture. Like the quote by T.S. Elliott, “For a poet to be also a philosopher he would have virtually two men: I cannot think of any example of this thorough schizophrenia (192).”
Today this misconception continues with movies like, Me, Myself, and Irene and even shows on NBC such as My Own Worst Enemy starring Christian Slater in 2008.
References:
Lilienfeld, Scott O. 50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology: Shattering Widespread Misconceptions about Human Behavior. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010. Print.
I found it really interesting that you include a quote from TS Elliott here. For me, that was quite surprising, especially as I hold him in some regard. Relating this myth to such a distinguished person really drove home how people must actually believe this myth, more so than pop culture references, which are easier to write off as exaggerations for entertainment, and nothing people would truly believe. Great job!
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