Jules Séglas (May 31, 1856 – 1939) was a French

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

who practiced medicine at the Bicêtre and Salpêtrière Hospitals in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Early in his career, he was an assistant to famed

neurologist Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous system, which comprises the brain, the ...

Jean-Martin Charcot Jean-Martin Charcot (; 29 November 1825 – 16 August 1893) was a French neurology, neurologist and professor of anatomical pathology. He worked on groundbreaking work about hypnosis and hysteria, in particular with his hysteria patient Louise A ...

(1825–1893). Séglas' ideas and theories influenced a number of psychiatrists, including Henri Ey (1900–1977) and

Jacques Lacan Jacques Marie Émile Lacan (, ; ; 13 April 1901 – 9 September 1981) was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist. Described as "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Sigmund Freud, Freud", Lacan gave The Seminars of Jacques Lacan, year ...

(1901–1981). In 1908 he became president of the ''Societé Medico-Psychologique''. In the field of

psychopathology Psychopathology is the study of mental illness. It includes the signs and symptoms of all mental disorders. The field includes Abnormal psychology, abnormal cognition, maladaptive behavior, and experiences which differ according to social norms ...

he conducted studies of

delusion A delusion is a fixed belief that is not amenable to change in light of conflicting evidence. As a pathology, it is distinct from a belief based on false or incomplete information, confabulation, dogma, illusion, hallucination, or some other m ...

hallucination A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the compelling sense of reality. They are distinguishable from several related phenomena, such as dreaming ( REM sleep), which does not involve wakefulness; pse ...

s and pseudohallucinations, providing a detailed

nosology Nosology () is the branch of medical science that deals with the classification of diseases. Fully classifying a medical condition requires knowing its cause (and that there is only one cause), the effects it has on the body, the symptoms th ...

of these phenomena. He did extensive research of language and its relationship to

mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

. Here, he described

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

traits such as logorrhea, embolalia, near-

mutism In human development, muteness or mutism is defined as an absence of speech, with or without an ability to hear the speech of others. Mutism is typically understood as a person's inability to speak, and commonly observed by their family members, c ...

, automatic speech, alexia,

agraphia Agraphia is an acquired neurological disorder causing a loss in the ability to communicate through writing, either due to some form of motor dysfunction or an inability to spell. The loss of writing ability may present with other language or neuro ...

, et al.; and how these behaviors take shape and interact in various psychiatric disorders.

Selected writings

* ''L’hallucination dans ses rapports avec la fonction du langage'', Progrès médical, 1888. * ''Des Troubles du langage chez les Aliénés'', Rueff Editeurs, Paris, 1892. * ''Leçons cliniques sur les maladies mentales et nerveuses (Salpêtrière (1887–94)'', Asselin et Houzeau, Paris, 1895 * ''Le délire de négations, in Du délire des négations aux idées d'énormité'', Jules Cotard & autres, L'Harmattan. * ''Sémiologie des affections mentales'' (

Semiology Semiotics ( ) is the systematic study of sign processes and the communication of meaning. In semiotics, a sign is defined as anything that communicates intentional and unintentional meaning or feelings to the sign's interpreter. Semiosis is a ...

of mental disorders), Chap. IV, Book I, 74-270, in

Gilbert Ballet Gilbert Ballet (March 29, 1853 – March 17, 1916) was a French psychiatrist, neurologist and historian who was a native of Ambazac in the department of Haute-Vienne. He studied medicine in Limoges and Paris, and subsequently became ''Chef d ...

's Traité de pathologie mentale.Anthology of French Language Psychiatric Texts
edited by Francois-Regis Cousin, Jean Garrabe, Denis Morozov

References

External links

* ttp://www.idref.fr/032951477 IDREF.fr(bibliography) French psychiatrists 1856 births 1939 deaths {{France-psychiatrist-stub