Multiple Personality

MULTIPLE PERSONALITY

Boris Sidis, Ph.D.

Simon P. Goodhart, M.D.

BEFORE presenting the case to the reader we intend to say a few words by way of introduction. We think it of importance to point out the distinguishing features of the ease. In the study of the phenomena of multiple personality we get a glimpse into the nature of the highest product of evolution, namely, human personality. From the facts of variation from what we regard as the normal we can form an idea of the complexity of the human self. Personality is but relatively a unity, it is really a complexity of many subordinate units. As pointed out in the previous chapters, the human mind is not a simple entity, but is, correlatively with physiological processes, a complexity of mental states. In analogy with the anatomical structure of neuron systems, the self is a complexity of many systems of systems, of what may be termed moments-consciousness. Human personality, in short, can appear under various aspects, can become divided and subdivided into many personalities of various degrees of intelligence, as can be found in the induced states of hypnosis, such as personality-metamorphosis, in the various changes of personality observed in spontaneous cases under the disintegrating influence of hurtful stimuli. Human personality can become crystallized into many different forms and can again be broken up into many subordinate units, which in their turn may become formed and re-formed, giving rise to a number of various personalities of a secondary character. These secondary personalities may coexist or alternate with the principal personality.

Alteration of personality is the most usual relation. With the manifestation of one personality the other disappears. Now it can be demonstrated by different methods, as it has been done in the Hanna case, that personalities which for the time being seem to disappear from the sphere of mental activity are really present subconsciously. Still, for all intents and purposes, they may be regarded as absent from the consciousness which is in active relation with the external environment.

Not being in direct relations with the external environment, the whole psychic content, the whole mass of associations remains unmodified. When now these dissociated systems of consciousness are stimulated to activity by various agencies, whether accidental or artificial, the mass reacts in the same way. The more often, however, the dissociated systems are brought into activity, the more often they are acted upon by different stimuli and made to react by their masses of psychomotor associations, the more frequently they become adapted to various external conditions, to various environments, the more modified does the content of the systems become. The mass psychomotor associations gradually changes and there are more chances to draw the dissociated systems into the active primary consciousness standing in direct relation with the external environment. It is, therefore, of the utmost importance, in the case of functionally dissociated systems subconsciously present, to stimulate them as often as possible and draw them from their inactive obscurity to the upper regions of daylight consciousness; to bring them into direct relations with the conditions of the external environment, and thus finally to effect an association with the primary functioning systems, or with what is regarded as the normal personality.

The unchangeability of the psychic content belonging to dissociated mental systems subconsciously present, as well as the principle of frequent stimulations by various agencies, physiological and psychological, under different conditions, are of great interest, both from a theoretical and practical stand-point. We have the possibility of running together and associating the disjointed portions of consciousness. This is precisely what has been done in the Hanna case, in which the association has been effectively established.

To be sure, the association is not effected by means of the principle of stimulation alone. We must also utilize the intermediary states which are of importance in mental alternation. In passing from the primary to the secondary personality there is an intervening period which is represented by a state of low moment-consciousness. This period varies in duration. Now it is not only the dissociated secondary states, but also the intermediary states that need be stimulated and often brought to the surface of consciousness in order to effect an association.

Cases of double consciousness are by no means abundant in the literature of abnormal psychology, but still rarer are the cases where the dissociation is so complete as to produce an amnesia so profound that the loss of mental content is so extensive as to have the patient revert to a state of infancy—to a state of a new-born baby—as it has occurred in the Hanna case. So rare are such cases of total amnesia that Janet, a man of such wide experience, tells us in his discussion of the Mary Reynolds case—a case which has been copied from book to book and which has circulated in literature for over a century—that he himself has not had the favorable opportunity of observing cases of total amnesia such as presented by Mary Reynolds. Until now the Mary Reynolds case has been the only case of complete double consciousness on record. It is certainly unfortunate that it has been drawn from second-hand sources. The Hanna case, described in the succeeding chapters, may be regarded as the first case of complete amnesia and double consciousness which has been under direct personal observation as well as under experimental control.

There is, moreover, another important feature to which we want to draw the reader’s attention. In the cases of double or multiple personality which have been reported in literature the mental wound formed has not been healed. The mental gap that separates the different personalities is not bridged over. In the interesting and possibly best observed case of double consciousness investigated by Professor James, namely, the Ansel Bourne case, the two dissociated personalities, primary and secondary, could not be run into one. “I had hoped,” writes Professor James, “by suggestion, etc., to run the two personalities into one and make the memories continuous; but no artifice would avail to accomplish this, and Mr. Bourne’s skull to-day still covers two distinct personal selves.” This holds true in other cases of the same type. In the Hanna case, which may be regarded as the classical type of total amnesia and double consciousness, the gap separating the dissociated mental systems has been bridged over and the two personal selves have become synthetized into one personality. This synthesis is not only of practical importance, on account of the complete cure that has been effected, but is also theoretically of great value. It demonstrates the composite character of human personality. “Observation,” says Ribot, “does not show that this chasm is ever bridged by direct recollection. Thus two suppositions are possible: either the registration of anterior states is effaced, or the conservation of anterior states persisting, their power of revivification by association with the present is destroyed. It is impossible to decide arbitrarily between these two hypotheses.” In the light of the experimental work and results obtained in the Hanna case the decision must be in favor of the theory of subconscious persistence of the apparently lost memories. The two personalities are but functionally dissociated and can by various methods be brought together, “the chasm can be bridged by direct recollection,” as it has been effected in the Hanna case.

The deepest interest of the case lies in the fact of complete dissociation and total loss of mental content up to the time of the accident. The dissociation observed in the cases of double or multiple consciousness is partial in character, the patient having lost but a portion of his life experience., This loss, as it has been pointed out before, may cover a period of a few hours to several years; or it may affect the whole of the patient’s life experience, involving not only the associations of his social relationships, such as the recognition of his family, of his friends, acquaintances and all his relations with them, but it may also involve his automatic psychomotor activities as well as habits and even his perceptual activity. In nearly all the cases of double or multiple consciousness the patient’s most fundamental associations are preserved; they appreciate time, know spatial relations; they can walk, run and handle objects, know how to dress, to eat, know the use of objects of every-day life experience; they, moreover, can talk, can understand speech and they rarely lose the knowledge of reading and writing. Not so was it in the case of Mr. Hanna; not only was the knowledge of his social relationship gone, but all his automatic, instinctive and habitual Psychomotor reactions in response to stimuli coming from the external environment, all were swept away by the catastrophe of the accident. He was an infant, a baby newly born, or like a visitor coming from another world. He knew neither objects, nor space, nor time; knew no speech; neither could he understand the meaning of gestures; he knew nothing of food, nor did he understand the manner of feeding; he could not walk, nor could he grasp objects, nor adjust himself to the perception of size, volume and distance. In short, the case is one of total loss of memory. Mr. Hanna was like an infant that had just opened his eyes to the light of day. In fact, after he had acquired some knowledge, he was for some time under the impression that people come into the world fully grown, like himself. It is from the little ones that he has learned the course growth in this world.

The Hanna case, then, presents a complete obliteration of all psychomotor acquisitions, and as such may be regarded as a case of what may be technically termed total amnesia. A graphic representation of the various forms of loss of memory, or of amnesia, in relation to this point will perhaps best bring home to the reader, at a glance, so to say, the depth and extent of dissociation observed in the Hanna case as compared with other cases of the same type of double and multiple personality less complete in the character of the dissociated content.

Let AA₁, BB₁, and CC₁ represent the habitual, automatic, instinctive, and subconscious reactions of the patient’s life. Let the area of curve E represent his fully conscious activity of his social relationship; then, under the influence of hurtful stimuli, the E content may be affected. The loss may be represented by shaded lines of a portion of the total area of E, according to the depth and extent of the loss.

Now in the Hanna case the loss went far deeper; not only the curve E but also the AA₁, BB₁, CC₁, portions became involved.

The Hanna case is of special value, if only from the stand-point of the possible morphological and functional modifications that may take place in the personal self. The study of the case is also of interest, if we compare the mode of re-education of such cases of total amnesia, or of “adult infants,” so to say, with what is observed in the gradual development of infant life. We may compare the re-education of Mr. Hanna in the secondary state with the acquisition by children of psychomotor reactions and associations in response to the stimulations of the external environment and their adaptations to the external objects of their little world. We can see reflected in this strange case of Mr. Hanna the growth and development of spatial and temporal associations and reactions observed in infants—their learning to walk, to talk and their acquisition of knowledge and adaptations by imitation. It is also of interest in comparison with the learning of estimation of spatial relationship in the case of the blind operated for cataract of the eye, and in the case of the education of the blind, deaf and dumb, such as that of Laura Bridgman and Helen Keller.

We must, however, keep in mind the fact that in cases of functional dissociation, as presented by double and multiple personality or in total amnesia, such as the Hanna case, the relation to child development and education of the defectives is but analogous. In the defectives and in children the psychic content is absent, while in the functional cases the content is really not absent, but present subconsciously.