page_title: Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier de Terre-Neuve du Thym
section_title: Psychiatric interpretation
hierarchical_section_title: Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier de Terre-Neuve du Thym / Psychiatric interpretation
context_page_description: Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier de Terre-Neuve du Thym was a French author and demonologist who may have been suffering from psychosis. He was born, and died, in Carpentras in the south of France, and was the heir to an estate, which he used to finance the publication of his unusual memoirs. He is remembered chiefly for his lengthy autobiography, Les farfadets ou Tous les démons ne sont pas de l'autre monde, originally published in three volumes between 1818 and 1820. The book was handsomely illustrated by a series of lithographs whose originals were sketched by Berbiguier himself.
context_section_description: As a result of these activities, he eventually was committed to the Hospice de la Salpêtrière under the care of Dr Philippe Pinel, a pioneer of psychotherapy; he was eventually released. Pinel was unable to achieve much for him, and appears in the book as a servant of the imps.  An ultimate improvement in Berbiguier's mental state may be indicated by a report that he attempted to round up and destroy the surviving copies of his book, which as a result are quite scarce.
caption: Imps torment Berbiguier in his bed.
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