--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Melancholy (1) An excess of black bile…" description: "\"“Melancholy (1) An excess of black bile, anatomized by Robert Burton, embraced by the swooning Romantics as evidence of their fine sensibilities, now f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/michael-bywater-53929_death_melancholy-1-an-excess-of-black-bile-ana_1993575.jpg" --- # Melancholy (1) An excess of black bile, anatomized by… ![“Melancholy (1) An excess of black bile, anatomized by Robert Burton, embraced by the swooning Romantics as evidence of their fine sensibilities, now fallen into disrepair, renamed as depression, wrongly attributed to a deficiency of serotonin and cured by infantilizing, self-indulgent 'therapy'…” quote by Michael Bywater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/michael-bywater-53929_death_melancholy-1-an-excess-of-black-bile-ana_1993575.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/michael-bywater-53929_death_melancholy-1-an-excess-of-black-bile-ana_1993575.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/michael-bywater-53929_death_melancholy-1-an-excess-of-black-bile-ana_1993575.jpg) > ““Melancholy (1) An excess of black bile, anatomized by Robert Burton, embraced by the swooning Romantics as evidence of their fine sensibilities, now fallen into disrepair, renamed as depression, wrongly attributed to a deficiency of serotonin and cured by infantilizing, self-indulgent 'therapy' and overpriced, addictive drugs pushed on harassed, gullible doctors by unscrupulous pharmaceutical companies which suppress their terrible side-effects in order to pursue their profits. (2) A crippling disease of unknown aetiology which throughout human history has devoured hope, destroyed lives and, after a period of living death, sometimes relaxed its grip just long enough for the sufferer to summon the energy for a merciful suicide; now, at last, frequently curable by a combination of therapy and antidepressants.”” [Michael Bywater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bywater/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how depression is misunderstood, over‑medicalized, and exploited by profit‑driven pharma, while also noting its deep historical suffering and occasional relief through proper treatment. **In simple terms:** Depression is often mischaracterized and commercialized, yet can be treated. Key Takeaway Seek balanced, evidence‑based care for mental health. Themes mental health pharma ethics history of medicine misdiagnosis Mood concerned critical hopeful Type analytical critical When to use this quote - clinical practice - patient advocacy - policy reform - public education Key Concepts biochemistry social stigma industrial influence Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure ethical treatment of depression? - What role should non‑pharmacological approaches play? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on medication can overlook individual needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black Bile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-bile-840118/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) [Indulgent Therapy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indulgent-therapy-3469078/) [Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy/) [Melancholy Excess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy-excess-3469076/) [Mental health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-health/) [Renamed Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renamed-depression-3469077/) [Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad/) [Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide/) ## Related quotes > [The body of man has in itself blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile; these make up the nature of this body, and through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hippocrates/the-body-of-man-has-in-itself-blood-phlegm-yellow-bile-and-black-bile/) [Hippocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hippocrates/) > [In the history of the treatment of depression, there was the dunking stool, purging of the bowels of black bile, hoses, attempts to shock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/in-the-history-of-the-treatment-of-depression-there-was-the-dunking/) [James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/) > [Why is it that all those who have become eminent in philosophy, politics, poetry, or the arts are clearly of an atrabilious temperament and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/why-is-it-that-all-those-who-have-become-eminent-in-philosophy/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [America, the Idea of: We yearned for its beer and jazz, its smoke-filled nightclubs, its Edward Hopper bars, the melancholy of rainy Manhattan Gershwin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bywater/america-the-idea-of-we-yearned-for-its-beer-and-jazz-its-smoke-filled/) [Michael Bywater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bywater/) > [“This was a characteroloical prelude, but it wasn’t chemical or somatic. 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