. The science and practice of medicine in relation to mind : the pathology of nerve centres and the jurisprudence of insanity, being a course of lectures delivered in Guy's Hospital. states of Chronic I\Iania. If you ask me to give you a definition of insanityI must answer, that definition is impossible, in thesame sense as that definition of heat or of cold isimpossible ; insanity is antithetical to sanity andonly known by comparison, as heat and cold areantithetical and only known by comparison. We have not, however, in the case sanity and in-sanity, an arbitrary standard of comparison, as w
. The science and practice of medicine in relation to mind : the pathology of nerve centres and the jurisprudence of insanity, being a course of lectures delivered in Guy's Hospital. states of Chronic I\Iania. If you ask me to give you a definition of insanityI must answer, that definition is impossible, in thesame sense as that definition of heat or of cold isimpossible ; insanity is antithetical to sanity andonly known by comparison, as heat and cold areantithetical and only known by comparison. We have not, however, in the case sanity and in-sanity, an arbitrary standard of comparison, as wehave in the case of heat and cold ; and even theethical standard laid down by law, the power ofdistinguishing right from wrong is highly vision-ary, because in ethics there is no abstract idea ofright and wrong. But as regards somatic pheno-mena, generally, we are much in the same posi-tion ; we have no abstract idea of, and no definitionof health and disease, except that they are anti-thetical, and only known by comparison, and weform for ourselves a sort of arbitrary standard ofthe healthy condition based upon harmony of ac-tion : thus the harmonious action of respiration,. Mania. ACUTE MANIA. 7I circulation, and the secretory, excretory, digestive,nervous, and locomotory organs, is called health,and the disturbance of this harmony constitutesdisease, which may vary in every shade or degree,from very slight and transient disturbance to pro-gressive and profound disorder. If the parallel betaken in mental conditions, and mental health orsanity be the harmony of the senses, the intellect,the emotions, and the will, insanity or mentaldisease will be the disturbance of this harmony:it may vary to every shade of degree, and likebodily disease, the pathology and pathologicalanatomy of mental disease will be referable to thearbitrary but scientific vStandard of a constant. You will be able to gain some though not a per-fect idea of the mental state in insanity, by a sim-ple compari
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