DISPOSITION: THE “PATHIC” DIMENSION OF EXISTENCE AND ITS RELEVANCE IN AFFECTIVE DISORDERS AND SCHIZOPHRENIA

Abstract

This paper aims to explore the “pathic” dimension of existence, which is both the capacity of being affected and being situated within moods and atmospheres. The broader sphere it intends to pursue is to show how the “pathic” dimension of existence is related to psychopathology and clinical practice, such as affective disorders and schizophrenia. In reaching its aims, the paper will initially focus on key concepts in Martin Heidegger’s meditation, such as Befindlichkeit, a structure of existence that, rather to be a starting point in the context of Heidegger’s understanding of fundamental structures of Dasein, it is a stepping stone on his pathway toward phenomenology and it roots, precisely, into Heidegger’s relationship with Aristotle, a central point of his philosophical education. In a second moment, the paper will discuss how moods, existential feelings and atmospheres are of interest of psychopathology and it intends to provide a hermeneutical-phenomenological account for the role of affects in understanding affective disorders.