Rewriting the Soul: Multiple Personality and the Sciences of Memory
Ian Hacking explores the rise of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in the late 20th century, focusing on how social, cultural, and psychological factors shaped its diagnosis and treatment. He argues that the phenomenon of multiple personality is not just a medical condition but also a product of narrative and institutional frameworks that influence identity and memory.
I highly recommend anyone with a dissociative disorder diagnosis, especially in the early stages of understanding, reads Rewriting the Soul. This book was written in 1995, when the DSM reclassified “multiple personality disorder” to “dissociative identity disorder”. He is a relatively agnostic, although cynical, observer of the phenomenon of “multiple personality disorder”. He discusses his concept of “Looping kinds”, which refers to the idea that classifications in the human sciences—such as mental disorders—can influence the behavior and experiences of those classified, creating a feedback loop where the label itself shapes reality. Hacking argues that DID is a prime example of this, as the diagnosis and its cultural portrayal altered how individuals understood and expressed their own identities.
A great presentation about facets of this book can be viewed here.
I write about some of his concepts in a blog post here.