Madness, Sanity, and Regeneration Anonymous College

In Regeneration, Barker presents the idea that there is a fine line between madness and sanity, in terms of the lack of differentiation between doctor and patient. The narrative, moreover, emphasizes the subjective nature of the word ‘madness’ itself. In this way, not only is madness explored in the context of Craiglockhart, but also as an isolated concept, questioning what it really means to be sane when the definition of such varies by era, culture, and person.

Barkers presents the idea of there being a lack of differentiation between Doctor and patient, in the way River’s self-diagnoses himself within the novel as being mentally ill himself, showing that the war was indiscriminate in the people that it impact. The quotation ‘War neurosis.’ Rivers said promptly ‘I already stammer and I’m starting to twitch’, shows that he has diagnosed himself as having the very thing that he is often trying to cure in his patients; shell shock. This fits with the idea that the concepts of madness and the symptoms such as ‘a stammer’ and ‘starting to twitch’ are so vague that really anyone could be considered mad, regardless of the actuality of their mental state. This vague definition links to the ambiguity surrounding shell sock and other...