RESUMO
Nineteenth-century art historian John Addington Symonds coined the term hæmatomania (blood madness) for the extremely bloodthirsty behaviour of a number of disturbed rulers like Ibrahim II of Ifriqiya (850-902) and Ezzelino da Romano (1194-1259). According to Symonds, this mental pathology was linked to melancholy and caused by an excess of black bile. I explore the historical credibility of this theory of 'wild melancholy', a type of melancholia that crucially deviates from the lethargic main type. I conclude that in its pure form Symonds' black bile theory of hæmatomania was never a broadly supported perspective, but can be traced back to the nosology of the ninth-century physician Ishaq ibn Imran, who practised at the Aghlabid court, to which the sadistic Ibrahim II belonged.
Assuntos
Bile , Transtorno Depressivo/história , Teoria Humoral , Psicologia/história , Mundo Árabe/história , Transtorno Bipolar/história , Transtorno Depressivo/etiologia , Pessoas Famosas , História do Século XV , História do Século XVI , História do Século XVII , História do Século XVIII , História do Século XIX , História Medieval , Humanos , Masculino , Filosofia Médica/história , Teoria Psicológica , Sadismo/históriaRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Research indicating the effects of real blood or of its iconic representation on human behaviour has thus far concentrated on phobia and aggressiveness. Little is known about other responses or, more fundamentally, about the biological basis of all such responses. AIM: In this study it is examined whether or not humans are able to detect real blood. METHODS: Human subjects (n = 89) were asked to distinguish different kinds of blood from red control fluids under varying visual and choice conditions. Relevant differences between subjects were tested for through written questionnaires, including standardized scales for disgust sensitivity (DS-R) and blood phobia (MBPI) and performance on two clinical olfactory tests. RESULTS: Analysis of variance shows that humans are excellent detectors of animal blood (in casu pig blood), whereas the ability of detecting human blood is much less developed. Surprisingly, differences in olfactory capacities and personal experience with blood have no effect on blood detection, while blood fear lowers and disgust sensitivity ameliorates this performance. CONCLUSION: This study allows further mapping of the exact role of disgust sensitivity in human behaviour, as well as a deliberate choice of materials in blood-related experiments. It is imperative for further research on the behavioural and psychological impact 'blood' resorts on humans.
Assuntos
Comportamento , Sangue , Comportamento de Escolha , Adolescente , Adulto , Animais , Comportamento de Escolha/fisiologia , Tomada de Decisões , Medo , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Fumar , Sus scrofa/sangue , Visão Ocular , Adulto JovemRESUMO
During the 1870s the Austro-Hungarian neuropsychiatrist Moritz Benedikt (1835-1920) proposed a remarkable neurological localization of morality in the human brain. More precisely, he thought of the ultimate parts of the occipital lobes as the seat of the moral sense. The so-called non-coverage of the cerebellum that was discovered in apes and criminals underpinned his localization. This paper studies the origin, background and reception of Benedikt's unique but opiniated localization of human morality. It is argued that his self-labelling as a freethinker offers the most understandable reason why Benedikt looked so eagerly for the seat of the moral sense in the human brain and why he was ultimately bold enough to suggest a cerebral localization.
