The term literally means flight, and it is used to describe the mental condition in which an individual is suddenly seized with a subconscious motivation to flee from some intolerable reality of everyday existence: this usually involves some agonising interpersonal relationship. As a rule, fugue lasts for a matter of hours or days, but may go on for weeks or even months. During the fugue the individual seldom behaves in a particularly odd manner – though he or she may be considered somewhat eccentric. When it is over there is no remembrance of events during the fugue.

Three types of fugue have been identified: (a) acute anxiety; (b) a manifestation of DEPRESSION; (c) a manifestation of organic mental state such as occurs after an epileptic seizure (see EPILEPSY).