Abstract
Since the first edition in 1843, the Annales Médico-Psychologiques have published reviews, biographies of the life and works of alienists, resumés of those applying for membership of the medical-psychological society, and obituaries…: a whole collection of documents which provide rich resources for biographical research. The biography of an alienist is constructed around their university and hospital qualifications, their scientific work (theses, research papers, and publications), their contribution to learned societies, their service in institutions and commissions, and their overseas assignments, etc. As such, an alienist's professional achievements form the canvas upon which a life portrait is painted. In this article, which draws upon ‘Aspect de la biographie’ by André Maurois (1885–1967), the reader is invited on an unusual biographical journey which was first taken following our encounters with Joseph Biéder (1923–2017), psychiatrist and former president of the Société Médico-Psychologique (1992), and with André Berne-Joffroy (1915–2007), literary and art critic, essayist, and contributor to La Nouvelle Revue Française. This journey has led the reader to other virtual encounters, which over the course of time, have shone a light on the lives of lesser known or more discreet alienists. Biographical accounts of alienists have an important contribution to make in advancing knowledge in the field of psychiatry especially in relation to issues of generational transmission and transformation, but also in reviving and commemorating forgotten life stories.
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