[From the a-topia of madness to the u-topia of the novel]

Abstract

European civilization is the only one which produced individual and fictitious novels ("romans" in French) and at the same time, an objective and scientific speech upon madness; in this article, the author shows how this second phenomenon allowed the appearance of the first. Actually, in France, it was when madness was enclosed within the walls of the "Hôpital général" and the Bastille, which occurred between the XVIth and XVIIth centuries (called Classical century) and after the moment grammar and Descartes' Cogito had put some order into the language, that the narration left its epic form developing into a free one, the novel. A place (a-topos) for madness and fancy made possible a non-place (u-topos) for the subject, the narrator of the novel. Do not forget that before this time, fiction was similar to fancy, and imagination to a foolish unreality. Only the theater (Shakespeare) was possible, as a visual perception of the virtual and unconscious fact. Even reading works of fiction was dangerous at that time. Novels, or works of fiction were only admitted when the superiority of reason and Cogito upon the language allowed a "good enough" reality for people's mind. After that, imagination and virtual speech subverted reason and scientific speech.