Portland State University PDXScholar Young Historians Conference Young Historians Conference 2019 May 1st, 10:30 AM - 11:45 AM Depiction and Function of Madness in Elizabethan and Jacobean Literature Yeiji Seo Clackamas High School Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/younghistorians Part of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Commons, Psychiatric and Mental Health Commons, and the Social History Commons Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Seo, Yeiji, "Depiction and Function of Madness in Elizabethan and Jacobean Literature" (2019). Young Historians Conference. 6. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/younghistorians/2019/oralpres/6 This Event is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Young Historians Conference by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. Please contact us if we can make this document more accessible:
[email protected]. DEPICTION AND FUNCTION OF MADNESS IN ELIZABETHAN AND JACOBEAN LITERATURE Yeiji Seo PSU HST 101/102: Western Civilization February 19, 2019 !1 Abstract Since the ancient times of Israel, Greece, and Rome, people with mental illnesses have been regarded as different from others in society. This paper aims to analyze the motives of authors of medical and dramatic texts of Elizabethan and Jacobean literature in regards to mental illness by specifically observing William Shakespeare’s King Lear and Robert Burton’s The Anatomy of Melancholy. This paper also considers the views of other scholars of the field to compose a complete insight on Shakespeare and Burton’s goals in depicting mental illness and finally advocates further research and understanding to positively contribute towards disability reform today.