Myths, projections, and overextensions: The conceptual landscape of Thomas Szasz

This chapter distinguishes among myths, projections, and overextensions as they occur within the practice of psychiatry—adding to the conceptual complexity of Szasz’s own analyses and reflecting on how his focal concept of autonomy may itself fall prey to myth, projection, or overextension. Szasz offers detailed explications of his use of the term “myth,” yet many questions remain regarding his application of that term and its relevance to psychiatry. How is a metaphor “literalized,” and when is this problematic? What terms, in addition to the term “mental illness,” serve to support the myths of psychiatry? How do myths relate to the projections and overextensions that can also be found in the language and practice of psychiatry? With these distinctions in mind, it is appropriate to ask whether Szasz’s own reliance on the notion of autonomous agency might itself qualify as a myth, a projection, or an overextension.