The Traité des Degenerations, by Benedict-Augustin Morel, published in 1857, contains a theory of the heredity of mental disorders that was to have considerable influence on psychiatric thought until the early 20th century. According to Morel's proposition, strongly impregnated with a religious Catholic perspective, man was created perfect by God. Degeneration, a correlative of original sin, consists of the transmission of evil wishes, bad habits and morbid traits to an individual's predecessors. As these stigmas are transmitted from one generation to the next, their effects tend to grow, leading to complete de-naturation of the lineage and causing its eventual extinction through sterility. Consequent to this theory, numerous projects of social intervention in the area of hygiene and sanitation were put into pratice in order to avoid more serious degeneration of the human race in the future.
Morel; heredity; degeneration; psychopathology