Dostoevsky and Epilepsy: An Attempt to Look Through the Frame

Abstract

Fyodor Mihailovich Dostoevsky, one of the greatest novelists of all times, had a unique ability to depict the social and moral conditions of 19th-century Russia, and anticipated with his writings many philosophical and scientific developments, such as existentialism and psy-choanalysis. The study of auto-and hetero-biographic reports, as well as of his literary pro-duction, suggests that he suffered from epilepsy since his mid-20s. Most of his seizures were described as generalized convulsive; however, many features, such as the presence of an 'ecstatic' aura, a pallor preceding the generalization, and especially a postictal dysphasia, point to a dominant (mesio-) temporal lobe origin. Although Dostoevsky in his late years complained of progressive memory impairment, he was able to write with his usual clever-ness until the end of his life, when he succumbed to a chronic lung disorder. From an epilep-tological point of view, this uncommon relatively benign evolution is noteworthy, and it offers an insight to the natural course of this illness. A natural course that is mostly unknown in our times, as the availability of antiepileptic drugs and surgery has biased our knowledge. The relationship between epilepsy and Dostoevsky's production is twofold. Firstly, as he had a tendency towards autobiographical descriptions not only of facts but also of thoughts, his novels represent a valuable source for the understanding of his illness. Secondly, his works contribute greatly to the de-stigmatization of patients with epilepsy.