The divided self : an existential study in sanity and madness / R.D. Laing ; with an introduction by Anthony David.

"First published by Tavistock Publications Ltd. 1960"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preface to the original edition -- Preface to the Pelican edition -- Acknowledgements -- Part One : -- 1. The existential-phenomenological foundations for a science of persons -- 2. The existential-phenomenological foundations for the inderstanding of psychosis -- 3. Ontological insecurity -- Part Two : -- 4. The embodied and unembodied self -- 5. The inner self in the schizoid condition -- 6. The false-self system -- 7. Self-consciousness -- 8. The case of Peter -- Part Three : -- 9. Psychotic developments -- 10. The self and the false self in a schizophrenic -- 11. The ghost of the weed garden: a study of a chronic schizophrenic -- References -- Index.

"His groundbreaking exploration of the nature of madness, R.D. Laing's The Divided Self illuminated the nature mental illness, making the mysteries of the mind comprehensible to a lay audience. This Penguin Modern Classics edition includes an introduction by Professor Anthony S. David. First published in 1960, this watershed work aimed to make madness comprehensible, and in doing so revolutionized the way we perceive mental illness. Using case studies of patients he had worked with, psychiatrist R. D. Laing argued that psychosis is not a medical condition, but an outcome of the 'divided self', or the tension between the two personas within us: one our authentic, private identity, and the other the false, 'sane' self that we present to the world. Laing's radical approach to insanity offered a rich existential analysis of personal alienation and made him a cult figure in the 1960s, yet his work was most significant for its humane attitude, which put the patient back at the centre of treatment."--Publisher's website.