Géricault painted ten portraits in total, of which six endure, encapsulating a taxonomy of monomanias. The majority of the six surviving portraits spotlight monomanias bearing legal implications: «Kleptomania» (Monomanie du vol), «Gambling Mania» (Monomanie du jeu), «Obsessive Envy» (Monomanie de l’envie), «Delusion of Military Command» (Monomanie du commandement militaire), «Compulsive Kidnapping» (Monomanie du vol des enfants). In 2021, a sixth portrait, christened «Monomania Resulting from Drunkenness,» was discovered by Javier S. Burgos. Though documentation is scant, the precision of the portrait enables the identification of inebriation indicators: flushed cheeks, an unbuttoned shirt coupled with winter attire implying heightened body temperature, and two superficial wounds (a lump and a bruise) on the left side of the forehead, possibly stemming from a bout of intoxication.

In an era bereft of standardized diagnostic tools, the largely discredited field of physiognomy held sway. Esquirol and his contemporaries posited that one’s physical appearance could be wielded to diagnose mental disorders. In this context, the series of portraits (and the advent of photography in the ensuing decades) garnered significance. Géricault’s series manifests a clinical intent in portraying these disorders — an interpretation of what was termed a «disorder» in the 19th century, a matter of a different hue. Notably, all six surviving portraits adhere to a uniform size and share common technical and stylistic traits: the composition mirrors one another, featuring an illuminated countenance set against a somber backdrop. Speaking of standardization, this forms the primary diagnostic tool.

As previously stated, the monomania diagnosis had but a brief stint in usage. Nonetheless, its influence has reverberated into contemporary times. Thus, the DSM, the preeminent classification of mental disorders employed by mental health professionals, sustains the notion of monomania in categories like kleptomania or gambling disorder.