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1. In Nellie Bly's experience at Blackswell Island, she notes multiple times that it was astounding that the doctors were not able to tell the difference between a "sane" and "insane" person. Is this reflective of the medical training at the time? What does that say about whether people (women specifically) getting the care that they actually needed.-Margie Jones

2. The conversation around women and mental health experiences is an interesting one. Is there an argument to be made that the same patriarchal values uphold women's mental health treatment today?-Margie Jones 

1. Considering the first hand accounts of women in the asylums, what would be some key reasons for all of the corruption within the asylums? What was the motive for keeping women in the asylum so long who were not ill? — Ruth Curran

2. Could well-meaning family and friends who committed their family/friends truly be blind to the abuses happening within the asylum so as to believe that their family was receiving the care as described to them? — Ruth Curran

1. In chapter 2, Bly talks about her plan on getting into the asylum. She mentions her original plan of going to a lodging house and stating that she was looking for a job to either the landlady or landlord, but decided it would be much faster to convince a boarding house of working women of her insanity. Why would it be easier for her to convince working women of her insanity? Why would she believe these women “would never rest until [she] was out of their reach and in secure quarters?” -Teresa

2. All semester so far we have been reading academic accounts of asylums. Some have gone over the structure of the asylum while others have talked about the doctors and the superintendents. Some have mentioned the struggles patients faced, how they had very little, if any rights. However, Nellie Bly’s Ten Days in a Mad-House is the first source where we get an idea of what patients thought and experienced. One big thought I had while reading Bly’s account was that the women weren’t being listened to. Miss Tillie Mayard is a great example of this. Mayard begged and pleaded to be tested by the doctors to prove that she wasn’t insane, but they all refused and sent her to Blackwell’s Asylum anyway. Watching events like these take place, watching the blatant disregard for the patients pushed Bly to strive to better the environment and circumstances these women were put into. -Teresa

One of the first major discrepancies Bly brings up is the institutionalization of Louise Schanz, who did not speak or understand English. By this note, Schanz had no reasonable way to protest her conditions without an interpreter, which doesn’t seem to be something Blackwell’s island would do. Was this common? -RJD

Bly’s understanding becomes increasingly clear that public institutions were not up to par with consistent standards of care. For example, her request for a nightgown is answered with blame on the institution being “charity.” Was the aforementioned experience consistent among most public institutions? -RJD