Madness and Enterprise

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The book examines the intertwining of economic reasoning and psychiatric practices in the North Atlantic during the nineteenth century. It reveals how mental illness was evaluated through financial lenses, with certain disorders viewed as assets while others were seen as liabilities. By assessing patients' financial capabilities, psychiatrists navigated uncertainties about mental health. This shift not only transformed perceptions of value—blurring moral, medical, and economic distinctions—but also allowed madness to be conceptualized as an economic entity, offering potential for redemption and reverence.