Madness and Creativity: Going Bonkers Can Lead to Being a Creative Genius

Madness and creativity are closely linked in meaning. Creativity refers to the construction of unique and original ideas processed within the imagination. Being creative and forming these ideas requires an element of madness to be at play. Madness has three definitions: one involving the state of being mentally ill, the second describing acting foolishly, and the third meaning chaotic activity (Lexico). The origin of the word mad is derived from the Old English word gemædde which means “to be out of one’s mind” (Mad [Adj.]). Creativity can push boundaries and manifest anything the mind wants. An antonym of madness is ‘sanity,’ which has the synonym ‘normality’ (Lexico). This shows madness to be pushing the ‘normal’ boundary, just as creativity does. In order to think creatively, one must embody being outside of their own mind and think beyond the realms of comfort and enter into the state of illness, foolishness, and frenzy. Creativity goes beyond the realm of normalcy and enforces being unconventional and authentic, which in turn, is the same for madness being beyond the realm of “normal” and into the world of “creative.”

Creativity pushes one to think deeply which can result in the manifestation of fiction. When producing creative work, one must bring into the imagination their wildest and most suppressed thoughts that reside at the back of their mind. Both creativity and madness can define one’s own reality when attempting to invent a fictional world. When using creativity, one meshes reality and imagination to convey a certain message. An example of this meshing is seen when an individual is so invested in their creative writing that they embody the characters to convey them on the page. Taking this impersonation of a fictional character can be intense and damaging to one’s mental health, making them go mad. This madness can be seen when one starts acting like a fictional character, rather than being themselves, blending their own reality with their imagination and placing them “out of their mind.” To expand on this, we can dissect actors that play the role of the Joker. An article dissecting the dangers of playing the Joker states, “With Suicide Squad, Leto took the strategy of method acting seriously, reportedly staying in character as Joker for the entire shoot and infamously sending bizarre and troubling gifts to his co-stars including bullets, a dead rat, and even some things we'll let you read about if you want but we'd rather not mention” (Martin). The unspeakable things mentioned were anal beads and used condoms. The sanity of Leto at this time can be questioned when sending these absurd and gruesome objects. The creativity of acting as the Joker blended into Leto’s reality and affected the way he treated his co-stars. The madness at work when being creative goes hand in hand here. The method acting Leto uses goes beyond the idea of “normal” and into the category of “mad.” Another example of this madness within creativity would be with Heath Ledger. Ledger was given creative control over how he wanted to portray the madness of the Joker. An article focusing on Ledger’s acting strategy when playing the Joker states, “Ledger pushed himself physically and mentally further than he ever had for a role...This extreme effort took a toll on the actor, leaving him exhausted and sleep-deprived. In the end, Ledger's issues with insomnia contributed to his premature death when the 28-year-old actor accidentally overdosed on prescription sleeping medication before the film's release” (Ravenola). Ledger’s tactics in playing the role of the Joker clearly blended the realms of creative and mad. Ledger took his acting methods so far that he embodied the role of the Joker when dealing with insomnia, and there is speculation that the character of the Joker led to his overdose death. The creative character drove Leger to the point of madness that he could not escape the blending of his reality in creativity and madness.

Human limitations are wildly pushed when using creativity. The article “The Rhetoric of Originality: Paul Celan and the Disentanglement of Illness and Creativity” states, “Madness was, on the one hand, an enthusiasm, or on the other hand, divine retribution for having dared to transgress human limitations” (Hillard 395-396). This article shows the close connection between madness and creative genius. Both are crossing the boundaries and limitations of humans and going “beyond one’s mind” (Mad [Adj.]). Some of the most famous writers whom we study today were considered mad, but also considered a genius of their time when creating works. If we examine some of the most brilliant work by Edgar Allan Poe or Virginia Woolf, they have both been deemed mentally ill and their madness comes out within the creativity in their work. Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” encompasses a dark and mad mind, which alludes to that of himself. There is an element of madness at play by allowing one to create such a piece of art and enter into the space of being out of one’s mind and immersed in creativity.

There is a madness within creativity in which it is dangerous to fully submerge one’s self in creativity when dealing with the dark side of the subconscious and bringing it to reality. However, it can also be seen that one must embrace their madness to unleash the full creativity within them. Passing human limitations and entering the state of creativity can also drive one to become mad. When using creativity, madness is at play by embodying the notion of being “out of one’s mind” whether that be in reality, in the imagination, or both.

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