MICHEL FOUCAULT E A FORMAÇÃO DISCURSIVA ACERCA DA LOUCURA: UMA REVISÃO DE LITERATURA

Abstract

The production of this article is the result of the theoretical maturation provoked by the readings of Foucaultian works. As a consequence, we measure the depth of knowledge of this philosopher who greatly contributed to several areas of knowledge, such as psychology, history, law, biomedicine, among others. In this sense, this study aims to analyze and understand the discursive formation about madness. To achieve this goal, we propose a literature review and focus our efforts on his main work on this topic: The history of madness in the classical age. We also consider articles, dissertations and theses related to the theme, contemplating our methodological design. We used the main search engines in our investigation: Scielo and Google Scholar. Our results point to three different discourses about madness in three different historical periods that Foucault called a condition of possibility. We conclude that, in the Middle Ages, the discourse of madness was based on demonic possession. Already in the classical age, it was understood by discursive formations as a form of error, a daydream. In the 18th century, with the modern age and the scientific contours of the time, madness came to be understood by the medical psychiatrist discourse as a mental illness.