The Divine Madness of Philip K. Dick

by Kyle Arnold

Overview

Widely recognized as one of the most imaginative writers of the 20th century, Philip K. Dick helped to shape science fiction into the popular genre it is today. His stories, renowned for their sophisticated philosophical themes and startling portrayals of simulated realities, inspired numerous television and film adaptations, including the 1982 cult classic Blade Runner. Dick's personal life took on an otherwordly quality when, in 1974, he famously had a series of bizarre visions. According to Dick, a pink light beamed psychic information into his brain, awakening memories of a past life as an ancient Christian revolutionary and granting him contact with time-traveling extraterrestrials. He witnessed scenes from ancient Rome superimposed over his California neighborhood, and warned local police he was a dangerous machine programmed to self-destruct. After the visions faded, Philip K. Dick spent the rest of his life trying to fathom the meaning of what he called his "divine madness." Was it schizophrenia? Or a genuine religious experience? In The Divine Madness of Philip K. Dick, clinical psychologist Kyle Arnold probes the fascinating mystery of Dick's heart and mind, and shows readers how early traumas opened Dick to profound spiritual experiences while also predisposing him toward drug dependency and violence. Disputing the myth that Dick had schizophrenia, Arnold contends that Dick's well-known paranoia was caused by his addiction to speed. Despite Dick's paranoia, his divine madness was not a sign of mental illness, but a powerful spiritual experience conveyed in the images of science fiction.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780190498313
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	05/02/2016
Series:	Inner Lives
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	208
File size:	647 KB

About the Author

Kyle Arnold is a psychologist at Coney Island Hospital and Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. 2-3-74 Chapter 2. Die Messages Chapter 3. Retreat Syndrome Chapter 4. Beetle Satori Chapter 5. Double Chapter 6. Counterfeit Burglary Chapter 7. The Pink Light Chapter 8. Living Information Chapter 9. Aftermath: Null Metanoia Chapter 10. Divine Madness Notes on Sources Index

Editorial Reviews

03/14/2016
Psychologist Arnold tries to do many things at once in this “psychobiography” of SF author Philip K. Dick. He accomplishes some, but falls short on others. Arnold analyzes key events and patterns in his subject’s life, using Dick’s stories to illustrate the points he makes about the author’s mental state at the time they were written. Dick’s “origin story” begins with the death of his twin sister, Jane, in infancy, and continues with his mother’s resentment of Dick for surviving. Arnold argues that the many traumas Dick experienced, beginning with parental neglect, contributed to his drug addictions, five troubled marriages, and breaks with reality, notably the visions he referred to collectively as “2-3-74.” Refuting the diagnosis most commonly ascribed to Dick—schizophrenia—Arnold describes the author’s mental illnesses one by one, including anorexia, paranoia, severe anxiety, vivid hallucinations, suicidal tendencies, and violent outbursts followed by amnesia. This unique take on a beloved writer has its flaws—for example, the passages connecting Dick’s life to his fiction can feel like an afterthought—but its repetitive quality ultimately feels apt, capturing the cyclical nature of addiction and mental illness. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"Arnold, a clinical psychologist, provides a phenomenological approach to the life of Philip K. Dick, closely reading the last eighteen years of his life." —American Literature

"If you want to understand Philip K. Dick, read Kyle Arnold's book." —Tessa B. Dick, wife of Philip K. Dick

"Kyle Arnold's The Divine Madness of Philip K. Dick is a thorough, unflinching look at one of the greatest literary minds of the 20th century. Arnold's training as a psychologist gives him a keen insight into the always-contentious question of Dick's mental health. But he does not attempt to diagnose Dick - rather, he explores the connection between his life and his work in an honest and thorough manner. What emerges is a work of unique importance to anyone interested in Philip K. Dick, his life, and his writings." —Gabriel McKee, author of Pink Beams of Light from the God in the Gutter: The Science-Fictional Religion of Philp K. Dick

"The shelf of science fiction novels and short story collections by Philip K. Dick is very wide. The shelf of books about Philip K. Dick is rapidly becoming even wider. The Divine Madness of Philip K. Dick, is among the best of these psychobiographies." —Alan Elms, Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of California, Davis

"This is a well-researched and persuasively written study of a controversial subject amongst 'Dickheads,' avid followers of Philip K. Dick. Dr. Arnold, a hospital affiliated practicing clinical psychologist, navigates the conflicting facts and opinions known about Dick's life and work to give us a powerful interpretation well worth reading, and sure to generate further dialog and debate." —Frank Bertrand, interviewer of Philip K. Dick and Contributing Editor to PKD Otaku

"Arnold details the ways in which awareness of Dick's childhood traumas and mystical visions broaden appreciation of his work, its adaptations, and influence. Recommended for sf fans as well as literary and academic audiences." —Library Journal

"A useful addition to the library of works on Dick." - Pippa Goldschmidt, Times Literary Supplement

From the Publisher

05/15/2016
Philip K. Dick's (1928–82) cultural legacy—extending from fiction into movies and even postmodern philosophy—is sprawling and extravagant, and the same can apparently be said for his "madness." While many of the incidents recounted from Dick's adult years are spectacularly transgressive or downright criminal, psychologist Arnold takes readers through a vivid account of what seems to have been an especially toxic childhood, providing a sympathetic context for events which otherwise might seem malignant or callous (domestic violence, corruption of minors, etc.). Arnold identifies themes from Dick's fiction, such as "inhumane authorities, deadly doubling, and miraculous but equivocal rescue" as rooted in the early death of his twin sister, Jane, and in his mother's subsequent shaming and neglect—which also set the stage for Dick's "2-3-74" series of paranormal experiences or hallucinations, which occurred in February and March of 1974. Arnold details the ways in which awareness of Dick's childhood traumas and mystical visions broaden appreciation of his work, its adaptations, and influence. VERDICT Recommended for sf fans as well as literary and academic audiences.—Jenny Brewer, Helen Hall Lib., League City, TX

Library Journal

2016-03-20
Philip K. Dick (1928-1982) sits on the couch for some deep analysis. Arnold, a clinical psychologist at Coney Island Hospital, believes that Dick "grappled with madness" his entire life. He begins this highly detailed psychobiography in the publisher's Inner Lives series with a story about an apprehensive Dick visiting director Ridley Scott on the set of Blade Runner. Dick had recently written a scathing review of Scott's Alien. He loved watching some of the film—the only one made from a Dick book while he was alive—but was worried when Scott said he was leaving out most of the book's spiritual themes. Dick felt they were central to this story, as they were to all his writings, believing he was a "mystical seer and prophet." Arnold goes into great detail in his psychoanalysis of Dick, and he identifies key episodes in his life that were instrumental in providing the imaginative fodder for his profoundly autobiographical fictions. The first was the death of his twin sister, Jane; Arnold calls it Dick's "origin story." They were born premature, and she died a few weeks later. He constantly obsessed over the fact that she died and he lived. The theme of "deadly doubling" is common in Dick's works. Then there was the event on 2-3-74 (as Dick officially called it) when he believed he was hit by a bright pink light he called Zebra; it filled his brain with mystical information. Arnold believes this event was actually a mental breakdown. Dick's addiction to amphetamines, not LSD, Arnold argues, caused Dick's paranoia. Arnold effectively describes how Dick's psychological problems play out in some of his characters and stories, and more of this would have been welcome. There's little here that doesn't relate solely to discussing his mental state. The book is overly prescriptive in its telling, and the prose is dry and academic. An inquiry into the SF master's mind that will interest only the most devoted of Dick's fans.

Kirkus Reviews