Are Genius And Madness Related?

Zara examines the phrase “all great art comes from great pain.” This book looks many artists and their lives. He studies their lives until he finds what drove them to the brink of anguish that inspires their greatest works. Zara searches for their troubles whether it be a tragedy from their childhood, a mental illness, or everyday suffering. He considers all types of artists including but not limited to the following: Amy Winehouse, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and Jane Austen.
Simonton’s “Are Genius and Madness Related? Contemporary Answers to an Ancient Question,” conveys that creativity and psychopathology do share similar characteristics, but the traits that creative people display are not equivalent to complete madness. Mentally ill artists should not be afraid to seek treatment in fear that their creativity will recede. Optimal therapy is maintaining a balance between the creativity and the insanity. …show more content…
The question is asked whether this rare, small group of people who share these qualities can further the knowledge scientists have of creativity. The article also evaluates which mental illness are more likely to be connected to creativity. Prentky comes to the conclusion that mental illness and genius do not exist harmoniously. As the mental illness becomes more prominent, creativity begins to fade. The stress of creativity may lead to a psychotic break.
Nasar’s biography of John Nash’s life is an in-depth account of his mathematical discoveries and his descent into paranoid schizophrenia. Nash is a perfect example of the link between creative genius and mental illness. His breakthrough with Nash game theory changed the mathematical world, but soon after he found himself in a psychiatric facility. He believed in supernatural beings. When asked why he believed what he did, he said the ideas came to him the same way his mathematical ideas