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DEPRESSION - A
HISTORY
THROUGHOUT
TIME
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1 Warm up

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. What’s the difference between ’sadness’ and ’depression’?

2. What’s the difference between ’melancholy’ and ’grief’?
3. What do the following words mean in the context of emotions? How would you use them in a
sentence?

temperament (n) withdrawn (adj.) thrive (v) suffering (n)

2 Depression - a history: Part 1

Look at the following extracts from Part 1 of the script. Number them in the correct order from 1 - 8.
The first one is done for you.

and what, if anything, to do about it.

as the natural reaction to a difficult situation.

but for centuries, there has been vast disagreement over what exactly it is

But your assumption that sadness has an external cause outside the self is a relatively new idea.

In its simplest terms, sadness is often thought of

Sadness is part of the human experience 1

When a friend says, ’I’m sad’, you often respond by asking, ’What happened?’

You feel sad when a friend moves away or when a pet dies.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

Now watch Part 1 of the video (00:00 - 00:36) and check your answer.

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. What was the last thing that made you sad?
2. If you’re feeling sad, what do you usually do to try and improve your mood?

3 Focus on vocabulary

Part A: Match the words to the definitions.

1. bile (n) a. an academic who studies the human race and how it developed

2. resonate (v) b. a thick liquid produced in the body

3. discern (v) c. existing in a clear and real way

4. tangible (adj.) d. to attempt to understand or recognize something that isn’t easy to

identify
5. anthropologist (n) e. to effectively put an idea into words

6. versus (prep.) f. to make someone think and remind them of a similar thing

7. articulate (v) g. to stand or sit on a branch or small surface, often used with birds

8. perch (v) h. usually used between two nouns to show that they are in opposition

Part B: Now, write the words from Part A in the correct gap in the following sentences.

1. When I came out of the office, my son was on top of the wall waiting for me.
2. Big crowds are expected tonight for the Boston Red Sox New York Yankees game.
That rivalry will never die down!
3. Ernest Hemingway suffered from depression too, and I found his writing really
with me.
4. ... and my eldest son is an . He’s in the Amazon at the moment studying one of
the tribes that live there.
5. I threw up last night, and I can still taste the in my mouth. It’s disgusting!
6. I’ve lived in Makassar for a few years now, but I still find it hard to between
Makassarese words and words from Bahasa Indonesia.
7. I enjoy talking to my counselor, but there are times when I find how I feel about
events in my life to be really difficult.
8. Unfortunately, the pandemic has had a effect on local businesses, with many of
them shutting down and leaving.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

In pairs, answer the following questions.

1. Which books or films really resonate with you?

2. When you need to talk about your feelings, do you find it hard to articulate your thoughts?
Why/Why not?
3. Are there any words in English that make it difficult for you to discern the difference between
them?
4. What event in your life made the most tangible difference in the way your life progressed after
that?

4 Depression - a history: Part 2

Watch Part 2 of the video (00:36 - 01:42) and complete the gaps in the following summary with one
word.

Doctors in Ancient Greece believed the body and (1) were regulated by
(2) humors, which were types of fluids. The humor responsible for sadness
was believed to be (3) bile, which was where we get the word melancholy
from. The way to balance the humors was via changing your (4) and certain
(5) practices. While we understand much more about the body now, those
early ideas are in line with current thinking about the causes of clinical (6) . Modern-
day doctors believe that unexplained emotions are due, in part, to brain (7) . The way
in which we respond to different circumstances can depend on the (8) of
these different chemicals.

5 Depression - a history: Part 3

Look at the following missing sentences from Part 3 of the script on page four. Skim through the
script and number them from 1 - 6.

(A) He calls his project ’paradise engineering’.

(B) But is there something sad about a world without sadness?

(C) If you’ve never felt melancholy, you’ve missed out on part of what it means to be human.

(D) Perhaps sadness helped generate the unity we needed to survive, but many have wondered
whether the suffering felt by others is anything like the suffering we experience ourselves.

(E) When we talk about heartbreak, the feeling of brokenness becomes part of our experience,
whereas in a culture that talks about a bruised heart, there actually seems to be a different
subjective experience.

(F) The Romantic poets of the early 19th century believed melancholy allows us to more deeply
understand other profound emotions, like beauty and joy.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

Depression: A history
- Part 3

1.
There’s also a long tradition of attempting to discern the value of sadness, and in that discussion, you’ll find a
strong argument that sadness is not only an inevitable part of life but an essential one. (1) . Many thinkers
contend that melancholy is necessary in gaining wisdom. Robert Burton, born in 1577, spent his life studying
the causes and experience of sadness. In his masterpiece The Anatomy of Melancholy, Burton wrote, ’He that
increaseth wisdom increaseth sorrow.’ (2) To understand the sadness of the trees losing their leaves in
the fall is to more fully understand the cycle of life that brings flowers in the spring. But wisdom and emotional
intelligence seem pretty high on the hierarchy of needs.
2.
Does sadness have value on a more basic, tangible, maybe even evolutionary level? Scientists think that crying and
feeling withdrawn is what originally helped our ancestors secure social bonds and helped them get the support
they needed. Sadness, as opposed to anger or violence, was an expression of suffering that could immediately
bring people closer to the suffering person, and this helped both the person and the larger community to thrive.
(3) .
3.
The poet Emily Dickinson wrote, ’I measure every grief I meet with narrow, probing eyes - I wonder if it weighs
like mine - Or has an easier size.’ And in the 20th century, medical anthropologists, like Arthur Kleinman, gathered
evidence from the way people talk about pain to suggest that emotions aren’t universal at all and that culture,
particularly the way we use language, can influence how we feel. (4) .
4.
Some contemporary thinkers aren’t interested in sadness’s subjectivity versus universality and would rather use
technology to eliminate suffering in all its forms. David Pearce has suggested that genetic engineering and other
contemporary processes cannot only alter the way humans experience emotional and physical pain but that world
ecosystems ought to be redesigned so that animals don’t suffer in the wild. (5) .
5.
(6) Our cavemen ancestors and favorite poets might not want any part of such a paradise. In
fact, the only things about sadness that seem universally agreed upon are that it has been felt by most people
throughout time and that for thousands of years, one of the best ways we have to deal with this difficult emotion
is to articulate it, to try to express what feels inexpressible. In the words of Emily Dickinson, ’"Hope" is the thing
with feathers - that perches in the soul - And sings the tune without the words - And never stops - at all -.’

Watch Part 3 of the video (01:42 - 05:12) and check your answers.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

6 Reading comprehension

Decide if the following statements are True, False, or Not Given.

Some people argue that feeling deep sadness is an essential part of the human experience.

1.

Robert Burton’s theory was that depression was essentially connected to those with low intelligence.

2.

Poets in the 19th Century wrote about the cycle of life and how death and life were connected.

3.

It is thought that displaying feelings of sadness helped our ancestors to bond and strengthen
relationships.

4.

20th-century research concluded that while languages are different, emotions are shared by everyone
in a very similar way.

5.

David Pierce was a vegetarian and argued for animal rights.

6.

It is unlikely that the people we are all descended from would have agreed with the ideas of David
Pierce.

7.

One of the best methods we’ve had to date for dealing with depression is to do our best to talk about
it.

8.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

7 Talking point

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. In your culture, do people talk about depression? Why or why not?

2. What do you believe to be the causes of depression generally?
3. Do you think society has a responsibility to reduce the causes of depression, or is it down to the
individual?
4. What do you think is the best advice for someone suffering from depression?
5. What action do you think people should take to avoid suffering from depression?

8 Extended activity/homework

Write a letter to a close friend who has told you they are suffering from depression.

Include the following:

• What you learned from the video in today’s lesson

• What action you will take to help them through this time
• What advice you will give to them

You should:

• Write at least 250 words

• Check your grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

Transcripts
2. Depression - a history: Part 1

C. Stephens: Part 1

C. Stephens: Sadness is part of the human experience, but for centuries there has been vast
disagreement over what exactly it is and what, if anything, to do about it. In its simplest
terms, sadness is often thought of as the natural reaction to a difficult situation. You
feel sad when a friend moves away or when a pet dies. When a friend says, ’I’m sad’,
you often respond by asking, ’What happened?’ But your assumption that sadness has
an external cause outside the self is a relatively new idea.

C. Stephens: Part 2

C. Stephens: Ancient Greek doctors didn’t view sadness that way. They believed it was a dark fluid
inside the body. According to their humoral system, the human body and soul were
controlled by four fluids, known as humors, and their balance directly influenced a
person’s health and temperament. Melancholia comes from melaina kole, the word
for black bile, the humor believed to cause sadness. By changing your diet and
through medical practices, you could bring your humors into balance. Even though
we now know much more about the systems that govern the human body, these
Greek ideas about sadness resonate with current views, not on the sadness we all
occasionally feel, but on clinical depression. Doctors believe that certain kinds of long-
term, unexplained emotional states are at least partially related to brain chemistry, the
balance of various chemicals present inside the brain. Like the Greek system, changing
the balance of these chemicals can deeply alter how we respond to even extremely
difficult circumstances.

C. Stephens: Part 3

C. Stephens: There’s also a long tradition of attempting to discern the value of sadness, and in that
discussion, you’ll find a strong argument that sadness is not only an inevitable part of
life but an essential one. If you’ve never felt melancholy, you’ve missed out on part
of what it means to be human. Many thinkers contend that melancholy is necessary
in gaining wisdom. Robert Burton, born in 1577, spent his life studying the causes
and experience of sadness. In his masterpiece The Anatomy of Melancholy, Burton
wrote, ’He that increaseth wisdom increaseth sorrow.’ The Romantic poets of the early
19th century believed melancholy allows us to more deeply understand other profound
emotions, like beauty and joy. To understand the sadness of the trees losing their leaves
in the fall is to more fully understand the cycle of life that brings flowers in the spring.

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

C. Stephens: But wisdom and emotional intelligence seem pretty high on the hierarchy of needs.
Does sadness have value on a more basic, tangible, maybe even evolutionary level?
Scientists think that crying and feeling withdrawn is what originally helped our
ancestors secure social bonds and helped them get the support they needed. Sadness,
as opposed to anger or violence, was an expression of suffering that could immediately
bring people closer to the suffering person, and this helped both the person and the
larger community to thrive. Perhaps sadness helped generate the unity we needed to
survive, but many have wondered whether the suffering felt by others is anything like
the suffering we experience ourselves.

C. Stephens: The poet Emily Dickinson wrote, ’I measure every grief I meet with narrow, probing
eyes - I wonder if it weighs like mine - Or has an easier size.’ And in the 20th
century, medical anthropologists, like Arthur Kleinman, gathered evidence from the
way people talk about pain to suggest that emotions aren’t universal at all and that
culture, particularly the way we use language, can influence how we feel. When we talk
about heartbreak, the feeling of brokenness becomes part of our experience, whereas
in a culture that talks about a bruised heart, there actually seems to be a different
subjective experience. Some contemporary thinkers aren’t interested in sadness’s
subjectivity versus universality and would rather use technology to eliminate suffering
in all its forms.

C. Stephens: David Pearce has suggested that genetic engineering and other contemporary
processes cannot only alter the way humans experience emotional and physical pain
but that world ecosystems ought to be redesigned so that animals don’t suffer in the
wild. He calls his project ’paradise engineering’. But is there something sad about a
world without sadness? Our cavemen ancestors and favorite poets might not want any
part of such a paradise. In fact, the only things about sadness that seem universally
agreed upon are that it has been felt by most people throughout time and that for
thousands of years, one of the best ways we have to deal with this difficult emotion
is to articulate it, to try to express what feels inexpressible. In the words of Emily
Dickinson, ’"Hope" is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - And sings the
tune without the words - And never stops - at all -.’

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

Key

1. Warm up

5 mins.
This allows students to look at some of the terms from the video and discuss the differences between them.
Ensure students can correctly pronounce them.
’Depression’ is generally a long-term illness and lasts longer than ’sadness’.
You can feel sadness from watching a film where a main character dies, but depression is too serious a term to
use in the same situation.
’Grief’ is usually used in the context of an emotion you feel when someone dies.
’Melancholy’ is a long-term sadness and is generally seen as a more serious form of depression.
temperament (n): someone’s nature which is shown in how they act
withdrawn (adj.): not wanting to interact socially
thrive (v): to be in a positive situation that works well for you and makes you happy
suffering (n): the act of going through physical or mental pain or difficulties

2. Depression - a history: Part 1

5 mins.
This allows students to look at the first part of the video and talk about some of the ideas it introduces before
moving on to more complex themes.
1. Sadness is part of the human experience
2. but for centuries, there has been vast disagreement over what exactly it is
3. and what, if anything, to do about it.
4. In its simplest terms, sadness is often thought of
5. as the natural reaction to a difficult situation.
6. You feel sad when a friend moves away or when a pet dies.
7. When a friend says, ’I’m sad’, you often respond by asking, ’What happened?’
8. But your assumption that sadness has an external cause outside the self is a relatively new idea.

3. Focus on vocabulary

5 mins.
Ensure students can correctly pronounce the target language. Ask students to complete this unaided in the first
instance, but use a reference afterward if needed.
1. b 2. f 3. d 4. c 5. a 6. h 7. e 8. g

Part B
10 mins.
This allows students to reuse the vocabulary from Part A. Ensure students consider the different forms of the
target vocabulary and how they can be used in the gaps.
1. perched 2. versus 3. resonated 4. anthropologist
5. bile 6. discern 7. articulating 8. tangible

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DEPRESSION - A HISTORY THROUGHOUT TIME

4. Depression - a history: Part 2

5 mins.
This allows students to spend some time understanding the second section of the video. Ask them to predict the
words in the gaps before watching and then check their answers by watching the video.
1. soul 2. four 3. black 4. diet
5. medical 6. depression 7. chemistry 8. balance

5. Depression - a history: Part 3

1. C - If you’ve never felt melancholy, you’ve missed out on part of what it means to be human
2. F - The Romantic poets of the early 19th century believed melancholy allows us to more deeply understand
other profound emotions, like beauty and joy.
3. D - Perhaps sadness helped generate the unity we needed to survive, but many have wondered whether the
suffering felt by others is anything like the suffering we experience ourselves
4. E - When we talk about heartbreak, the feeling of brokenness becomes part of our experience, whereas in a
culture that talks about a bruised heart, there actually seems to be a different subjective experience
5. A - He calls his project ’paradise engineering’
6. B - But is there something sad about a world without sadness?

6. Reading comprehension

10 mins.
Ask students to underline the answer. If they are unable to do this, the answer will be Not Given. If they can, it
will be True or False.
1. True. ’... you’ll find a strong argument that sadness is not only an inevitable part of life but an essential one.’
2. False. ’Burton wrote, "He that increaseth wisdom increaseth sorrow."’
3. Not Given. The script mentions the poets having these ideas, but it does not state that this is specifically what
they wrote about.
4. True. ’Scientists think that crying and feeling withdrawn is what originally helped our ancestors secure social
bonds and helped them get the support they needed.’
5. False. ’Arthur Kleinman gathered evidence from the way people talk about pain to suggest that emotions aren’t
universal at all and that culture, particularly the way we use language, can influence how we feel.’
6. Not Given. While he advocated against the suffering of animals, it does not say what his stance was on this
particular subject.
7. True. ’Our cavemen ancestors and favorite poets might not want any part of such a paradise.’
8. True. ’... one of the best ways we have to deal with this difficult emotion is to articulate it, to try to express
what feels inexpressible.’

7. Talking point

10 mins. - Ask students to discuss the questions. Circulate and help as needed.

8. Extended activity/homework

40 mins+. - Ask students to plan, write, and edit their letters. Ask them to imagine a particular friend to help them
visualize the audience for the letter. Be sure to give students feedback on their work.

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