Research Catalog

Title

Psychedelic prophets : the letters of Aldous Huxley and Humphry Osmond / edited by Cynthia Carson Bisbee, Paul Bisbee, Erika Dyck, Patrick Farrell, James Sexton, and James W. Spisak.

Publication

• Montreal ; Kingston ; London ; Chicago : McGill-Queen's University Press, [2018]
• ©2018

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

• Bisbee, Cynthia Carson
• Sexton, James
• Spisak, James W.
• Dyck, Erika
• Bisbee, Paul, 1945-
• Farrell, Patrick, 1978-
• Huxley, Aldous, 1894-1963
• Osmond, Humphry

Description

lxxix, 644 pages : illustrations, portraits, facsimiles; 25 cm.

Summary

"Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) was the author of nearly fifty books and numerous essays, best known for his dystopian novel Brave New World. Humphry Osmond (1917-2004) was a British-trained psychiatrist interested in the biological nature of mental illness and the potential for psychedelic drugs to treat psychoses, especially schizophrenia. In 1953, Huxley sent an appreciative note to Osmond about an article he and a colleague had published on their experiments with mescaline, which inspired an initial meeting and decade-long correspondence. This critical edition provides the complete Huxley-Osmond correspondence, chronicling an exchange between two brilliant thinkers who explored such subjects as psychedelics, the visionary experience, the nature of mind, human potentialities, schizophrenia, death and dying, Indigenous rituals and consciousness, socialism, capitalism, totalitarianism, power and authority, and human evolution. There are references to mutual friends, colleagues, and eminent figures of the day, as well as details about both men's personal lives. The letters bear witness to the development of mind-altering drugs aimed at discovering the mechanisms of mental illness and eventually its treatment. A detailed introduction situates the letters in their historical, social, and literary context, explores how Huxley and Osmond first coined the term "psychedelic," contextualizes their work in mid-century psychiatry, and reflects on their legacy as contributors to the science of mind-altering substances. Psychedelic Prophets is an extraordinary record of a full correspondence between two leading minds and a testment to friendship, intellectualism, empathy, and tolerance. The fact that these sentiments emerge so clearly from the letters, at a historical moment best known for polarizing ideological conflict, threats of nuclear war, and the rise of post-modernism, reveals much about the personalities of the authors and the persistence of these themes in the modern world."--

Series Statement

McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; 48

Uniform Title

McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; 48.

Subject

• Huxley, Aldous, 1894-1963 > Correspondence
• Osmond, Humphry > Correspondence
• Huxley, Aldous, 1894-1963
• Osmond, Humphry
• 1900-1999
• Authors, English > 20th century > Correspondence
• Psychiatrists > Saskatchewan > Correspondence
• Hallucinogenic drugs > Therapeutic use
• LSD (Drug) > Therapeutic use
• Schizophrenia > Treatment
• Mental illness > Treatment
• Authors, English
• Psychiatrists
• Saskatchewan

Genre/Form

• Collected Correspondence.
• Personal correspondence.
• Records and correspondence.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (pages [621]-628) and index.

Additional Formats (note)

• Also available in electronic format.
• Issued also in electronic format.

Call Number

JFE 19-3469

ISBN

• 9780773555068
• 0773555064
• 9780773556027 (canceled/invalid)
• 9780773556034 (canceled/invalid)

OCLC

1077269090

Title

Psychedelic prophets : the letters of Aldous Huxley and Humphry Osmond / edited by Cynthia Carson Bisbee, Paul Bisbee, Erika Dyck, Patrick Farrell, James Sexton, and James W. Spisak.

Publisher

Montreal ; Kingston ; London ; Chicago : McGill-Queen's University Press, [2018]

Copyright Date

©2018

Type of Content

text

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Series

McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; 48

McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; 48.

Additional Formats

Also available in electronic format.

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references (pages [621]-628) and index.

Additional Formats

Issued also in electronic format.

Chronological Term

1900-1999

Added Author

Bisbee, Cynthia Carson, editor.

Sexton, James, editor.

Spisak, James W., editor.

Dyck, Erika, editor.

Bisbee, Paul, 1945- editor.

Farrell, Patrick, 1978- editor.

Huxley, Aldous, 1894-1963 Correspondence. Selections.

Osmond, Humphry. Correspondence. Selections.

Other Form:

Electronic version: Psychedelic prophets. Montreal : McGill-Queen's University Press, [2018] 9780773556027 (OCoLC)1059577203

Psychedelic prophets. Montreal ; Kingston ; London ; Chicago : McGill-Queen's University Press, 2018. McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society McGill-Queen's/Associated Medical Services studies in the history of medicine, health, and society ; (CaOONL)20189037288

Research Call Number

JFE 19-3469