Mad, Bad and Sad: A History of Women and the Mind Doctors from 1800

"This is a compliacted subject but the author makes it a fascinating read by including many case histories among them Sylvia Plath and Marilyn Monroe. The book demonstrates how there have always been more women than men suffering from mental issues but poses the question about why this is. The author suggests that in some eras this could be that women have not conformed to the norm and are therefore considered mad.

There are quotations from some incredibly lucid individuals while they were incarcerated in asylums which make the reader question why they had been labelled mad in the first place. Serious questions are raised about the changing face of mental illnes through the ages and how certain forms of illness were prevalent at certain times. In the main the book raises more questions than it answers and leaves the reader to draw their own conclusions from the facts presented.

If I have a criticism of the book it is that it concentrates on the work of Freud and his disciples and Jung gets hardly a mention. Overall this is an extremely worthwhile book, though it is not a particularly easy read."
~ Written on 2009-08-06

"I was very excited about this book. It sounded interesting and right up my alley. But from the first chapter I was astounded by the writing. it was very difficult to read--verbose, often grammatically incorrect. It made it all very distracting from the subject matter and stories. Anecdotes were good, interesting. But the writing really detracts from quality of book, unfortunately. "
~ Written on 2009-05-18

"I loved this book. It is exciting to read a book that puts into words many of my own thoughts, views and beliefs about how women were [and, sadly, still are] treated or mistreated according to the mostly-male views of how women'ought' to be , and how they have to be made to conform to other people's views of their personalities and types.

Mind doctors have much to be praised and blamed for; a book such as this is a salutory reminder of past suffering in the name of experiment and misuse of power. "
~ Written on 2009-04-20

"A very well researched and written account of psychological pressure through the life and times of women
(Including lots of insights into the after lives of some famous patients). This book is fascinating, and it's written in a lively and stylish manner, without a whiff of jargon.
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~ Written on 2008-04-30

"Long and thorough but easily dipped into by chapters, this is a great survey of specific women - from famous literary figures on down - and the medical practices and theories that bound them and defined them in different ways. While it's clearly taken on a lot of the theory of Foucault and others in its reading of history, it's not a difficult book. Though rigorous, it is less interested in a final conclusion or a theory of history, than it is in the weave of detail and the weighing of comparables in actual lives, both of the mind-doctors and their subjects. Some of the life stories are both unbelieveable and inspiring. Making difficult ideas accessible and even entertaining to read about, i recommend this highly as a very usfeul and readable survey of the field.




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~ Written on 2008-02-15