In this essay, Rosa Montero warns us about “The Danger of Being Sane.” It seems like a rather strange assertion, one that might be made by a madman. But, as the author humorously mentions, “she was never very normal.” The essay explores what is considered normal and what is understood by madness. It attempts to give space and even relevance to the much-maligned concept of madness. We know that many of humanity's greatest geniuses suffered from psychiatric disorders, and thanks to their “madness,” they contributed significantly to changing the course of human history.
From these “non-normal” minds emerged the most creative ideas, and without romanticizing mental illness or presenting it as a prerequisite for genius , perhaps these different or somewhat deviant minds deserve special attention to understand creativity in human beings. Therefore, perhaps “being normal isn’t so great,” and that is why the author points out: “The danger of being sane.”
Synopsis
A passionate defense of the value of being different.
Based on her personal experience and reading numerous books on psychology, neuroscience, literature and memoirs by great authors from different creative disciplines, Rosa Montero offers us a fascinating study on the links between creativity and mental instability. And she does so by sharing with the reader numerous amazing curiosities about how our brain works when creating, breaking down all the aspects that influence creativity, and assembling them before the reader's eyes while she writes, like a detective ready to solve the scattered pieces of a investigation.
Essay and fiction go hand in hand in this exploration of the links between creativity and madness, and thus the reader will witness the creation process itself, discover the theory of "the perfect storm", that is, that in the creative explosion brings together a series of unrepeatable factors, chemical and situational, and will share the personal experience of how Rosa Montero lived directly, and for years, very close to madness.
The danger of being sane speaks of how "fairies" bestow upon us a gift, and make us pay a price for it; ordinary people don't pay that heavy price, but run the risk of dying of boredom, instead of dying of love. "As with everything, the key lies in the balance between the percentage of detachment and that of feeling, in achieving a certain harmony between the self that suffers and the self that controls," says the author herself.
About the author: Rosa Montero
Biography:
She was born into a humble family, the daughter of a banderillero and a housewife. From an early age, she demonstrated her inclination towards writing by composing her first novel at the age of five. In 1969, she entered the Complutense University of Madrid, then known as the University of Madrid. Initially, she enrolled in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters with the intention of studying psychology and, later, journalism.
During her university years, in 1970, at the age of 19, she began her career as a journalist, contributing to various news outlets, including Pueblo, Fotogramas, and Posible. Despite her initial intention to study psychology, she abandoned these studies after four years to graduate from the Higher School of Journalism in Madrid.
Simultaneously, during his time at university, he participated in collaborations with independent theater groups such as Canon and Tábano, thus demonstrating his interest and participation in various artistic expressions.
In 1988, she married journalist Pablo Lizcano. Her personal life was marked by profound sadness when Lizcano passed away in 2009 after a long illness. Throughout her career, this writer and journalist has left her mark not only in the field of communication but also in the cultural and artistic scene , standing out for her dedication and versatility.
Publications and recognitions:
He has published the novels Crónica del desamor (1979), The Delta function (1981), I will treat you like a queen (1983), Amado Amo (1988), Temblor (1990), Bella y Oscura (1993), La hija del caníbal (1997, Primavera Novel Award), The Heart of Tartarus (2001), The Crazy Woman in the House (Alfaguara, 2003).
(While the Book Award 2004 for best book of the year , Grinzane Cavour Prize 2005 and Roman Primeur Prize 2006, France), The Story of the Transparent King (Alfaguara, 2005; While the Book Award 2005 for best book of the year, and Mandarache Prize 2007), Instructions for Saving the World (Alfaguara, 2008; Readers' Prize of the Cognac European Literatures Festival, France, 2011), Tears in the Rain (2011), Tears in the Rain. Comic (2011; Best Comic Award 2011 at the Barcelona International Comic Fair), The Ridiculous Idea of Never Seeing You Again (2013; Madrid Critics' Award 2014), The Weight of the Heart (2015), The Flesh (Alfaguara, 2016), The Times of Hatred (2018) and Good Luck (Alfaguara, 2020).
She has also published the book of stories Lovers and Enemies (Alfaguara, 1998; Círculo de Críticos de Chile Award 1999), and two biographical essays, Historias de mujeres -republished in an illustrated edition, revised and expanded with the title Nosotras. Stories of women and something else (Alfaguara, 2018) - and Passions (Alfaguara, 2000), as well as stories for children, compilations of interviews and articles and Write with Rosa Montero (Alfaguara, 2017).
Since the end of 1976 she has written for the newspaper El País , where she was editor-in-chief of the Sunday supplement during 1980-1981. In addition to those mentioned, she has been awarded the World Prize for Interviews (1978), the National Journalism Prize for reports and literary articles (1980) , the Madrid Press Association Prize for a lifetime of professional achievement (2005), the International Columnists of the World Prize (2014), the National Prize for Spanish Literature (2017), the Legend Prize from the Madrid Booksellers Association and the City of Alcalá of Arts and Letters Prize (2019) and the Cedro Prize (2020).
She holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Puerto Rico and her work has been translated into more than twenty languages.
Analyzing the essay on “The danger of being sane”
Honor the madness
We could say that this book tries to value madness. This is not about romanticizing mental illnesses or entering a loop of magical or delusional thoughts that applaud mental disorders. Perhaps it is opening the way to a philosophical and scientific understanding of madness.
In his work, Montero examines questions about what madness is, what is normal and abnormal, and what relationships these conditions have with creativity.
About normality
The author reminds us of the concept of normal: from a statistical point of view, normal is what predominates in a population, what is most frequent . What is not normal is what is less frequent, also called rare. But what is rare or infrequent is not necessarily the worst, defective, or a mistake.
This is a common misconception among the general public, and it's important to begin by understanding the meaning of the language. "Rare" doesn't mean "extravagant ." The latter describes a striking aspect of a person or their behavior, something exaggerated or peculiar. "Rare," or "not normal," is a purely quantitative term, referring to a quantity within a population: the least abundant or least frequent.
The creativity of crazy people and their manias
On the other hand, we have the concept of madness. Colloquially, crazy is understood as a person who suffers from mental disorders and has behavior that deviates from the normal or most frequent. And it is true. Then, crazy people are not very common in the population (or are they?) in statistical terms.
Human beings tend to discredit anything that deviates from the norm, anything strange. When they find something different, they perceive it as a kind of threat. This is where Rosa Montero intervenes in her essay, where, in an engaging way and with touches of humor, she tries to consider that those considered "mad" may not be so mad after all, and that those who are, perhaps deserve a place in the world. We all remember great geniuses of humanity who have suffered from depression, phobias, and other psychiatric disorders , and what would humanity be without their great contributions? Essentially, "we have much to thank the world's 'madmen' for, who have given us so much."
Hence the author's title of her essay, "The Danger of Being Sane": a perfectly balanced and calm mind sometimes lacks those "special" neural pathways from which the most brilliant and creative ideas emerge. Using the feminine form ("sane") is because the author herself refers to herself—humorously—as "not being very normal, even as a child." Note that:
- KafkaIn addition to chewing each bite 32 times, he did gymnastics naked with the window open in the middle of winter.
- Socrates He always wore the same clothes, walked barefoot and danced alone.
- Proust He went to bed one day and didn't come out again (and they did the same thing) Valle-Inclan y Juan Carlo Onetti).
- Agatha Christie I wrote in the bathtub.
- Rousseau He was a masochist and exhibitionist.
- Freud I was afraid of trains.
- Hitchcock I was afraid of eggs.
- Napoleon fear of cats.
- Vincent Van Gogh He suffered from depression and we all know about his famous ear cutting during an artistic crisis.
- Virginia Woolf He suffered from depression and some have suggested that he may also have suffered from bipolar disorder.
And the list could go on…