From Vastation to Prozac Nation

Abstract Victims of major depressive illness often find that this disease shapes their sense of self in profound and lasting ways. Exactly how indi-viduals experience and give meaning to their depression, however, varies through history and across cultures. This article considers two revolutions in the conceptualization of depression: the modern revolution in the late nineteenth century that turned from a religious to a psychological outlook; and the postmodern revolution, that supplants the psychological with the biochemical. Historically western culture has valued melancholy for its poetic, artistic and philosophical virtues. The depressed conciousness has often been viewed as a fount of genius or inspired truth. What if, in fact, it primarily reflects biochemical instabilities? What can or should the depressed ‘do ’ with their biochemically unstable consciousness? What kind of self emerges from the biochemical understanding of depression? This article argues that the psychological self retained significant ties with the divine soul, and that it retained depression as a central locus of meaning and cultural effervescence. The biochemical revolution cuts the self free from depression’s narratives. This radical freedom opens onto uncharted terrain for the elaboration of selfhood. Whether individuals will seize this freedom to create new narratives and what those narratives might be remains to be seen. Key words depression • consciousness • self • SSRI • theology Vol 39(3): 267–294[1363–4615(200209)39:3;267–294;023994] Copyright © 2002 McGill University transcultural psychiatr