Foucault à Münsterlingen: A Young Philosopher's Asylum Visit

On March 2, 1954, Michel Foucault, then a 27-year-old psychology assistant at the University of Lille, traveled to Münsterlingen, a Swiss town on Lake Constance. There, he visited the cantonal asylum at the invitation of its director. This event is documented in the book 'Foucault à Münsterlingen,' edited by Jean-François Bert and Elisabetta Basso, published by EHESS. The book examines Foucault's early engagement with psychiatric institutions, a theme that would later shape his seminal works on madness and power. The visit occurred during his formative years before his major publications like 'Madness and Civilization.' The volume includes archival materials and analysis, shedding light on a little-known episode in Foucault's intellectual biography. The book was reviewed in artpress issue 433, May 2016, page 82.