Skip to main content
Journal of Medical Ethics logoLink to Journal of Medical Ethics
. 1976 Sep;2(3):127–137.

Exorcism: a psychiatric viewpoint.

W H Trethowan
PMCID: PMC2495148  PMID: 966260

Abstract

Doctors, for several reasons, should be concerned with exorcism is the view of Professor Trethowan, who in this paper, looks at the main features of exorcism as practised in the middle ages and now appearing in the modern world, as was seen in the recent Ossett case in Britain. He examines in some detail the nature of supposed demoniacal possession and describes its symptoms and signs. He also touches on the social, as opposed to the religious, background in which demoniacal possession flourished (not lacking in the world today), so leading to an examination of the psychodynamic aspects of demoniacal possession and the question of absolute evil. Finally he compares the techniques of exorcism and of modern psychiatric practice.

Full text

PDF
127

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. TRETHOWAN W. H. The demonopathology of impotence. Br J Psychiatry. 1963 May;109:341–347. doi: 10.1192/bjp.109.460.341. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Medical Ethics are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES