My Psychosis, My Bicycle, and I: The Self-Organization of Madness [Hardcover]

Fritz B. Simon (Author), Sally Hofmeister (Translator), Bernd Hofmeister (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1996 | ISBN-10: 1568216475 | ISBN-13: 978-1568216478

This text presents a systems-theory approach to the understanding of madness. It shifts the viewpoint of the observer, forcing the re-examination of ideas that previously seemed self-evident.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 293 pages
• Publisher: Jason Aronson Inc (March 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568216475
• ISBN-13: 978-1568216478
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,194,948 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the very best books that I ever have read :-), July 2, 2005

By 

Norbert Sczepanski (Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Psychosis, My Bicycle, and I: The Self-Organization of Madness (Hardcover)

The title itself is already a real eyecatcher, isn`t it? But dont get the author wrong: this is NOT a textbook of psychiatry. It is more about a theory of cognition.

This book is very informative, particularly chapter 4 is a MUST READ for everyone (!) who deals with communication.

Simon demonstrates, that the common ""transmitter + receiver model" (a good technical, mechanical model, of course)

is not only not useful, but even rather harmful (!),

when applied to communication between human beings.

We do NOT transmit or send so called "news" or "messages" or

"information" AT ALL.

What we do transmit or send are only SIGNALS (!) to which the other person then attributes / ascribes a certain meaning!

A meaning that is not enclosed in the words theirselves, but

is constructed (!) by THE person who has received these signals!

And this is a tremendous difference!

Just a difference which makes a difference!

To name only one example of Simon himself:

When a siren is wailing at noon, then people hear this signal + then they ascribe a meaning to this signal: eg nuclear war or lunch break? <smile>

This book is a very good introduction to the radical constructivism.

And that is an epistemology eg theory of cognition.

Some people think that the radical constructivism is a NEW epistemology.

That is completly wrong. The roots of this theory go back to the ancient Greeks eg it is more than 2000 years old.

But it was never the main stream philosophy, but only a side stream. Interestingly, many poets were radical constructivists such as Shakespeare, Goethe, Hermann Hesse + many more.....

And "the whole story of introducing the radical constructivism"

already starts in the preface - with a weird + funny wording.

The gist of what he writes is something like:

"Do you, too, belong to those people who believe that they hold now a book in their hands + read that book?"

This book is written in a style which I find fantastic:

funny, humorous, terrific (!) puns!

The world famous Paul Watzlawick praises this book to the skies

+ he describes it not only as a bestseller, but even as a

"future classic"!

Simon particularly proves that the classical Aristotelian bi-valent logic with its "either-or" is NOT adequate at all in order to describe phenomena!

Unfortunately, he doesn't give any reference to the POLYvalent (!) logic by Gotthard Guenther, a German philosopher who was teaching in the US.

My overall judgement:

excellent book which you will read with much pleasure!

I recommend this book VERY warmly to everyone!

By the way:

Originally Fritz B. Simon was a physician and a SYSTEMIC psychotherapist (systemic therapy). He is now professor of leadership + organization at the private elite university of Witten/Herdecke in Germany.

To close with a radical constructivist`s quote:

"There is nothing either good or bad, but

==> thinking makes it so"

Shakespeare, Hamlet

More useful info on that:

Discover a new way of thinking:

the radical constructivism

http://sczepanski.blogspot.com/

Discover the 5 axioms of communication by Paul Watzlawick

http://sczepanski-marketing.b2bblogs.com

Short Watzlawick Information

http://watzlawick-information.blogeasy.com

Discover: all depends on context

http://context.ModBlog.com

A rather huge site about this topic

http://radicalconstructivism.com

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Book, December 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: My Psychosis, My Bicycle, and I: The Self-Organization of Madness (Hardcover)

A good read about the mind. Not the easiest book I've read but worth the time.