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1. 10 Days in a Madhouse is one of the most interesting accounts we have seen, however, it is also very different from the scholarly works we are used to seeing. What do you think of Nellie Bly's account? How credible would you say her work is? Do you think any parts may have been embellished by the editor to sell the story in newspapers?
2. Would you consider Bly's approach to uncovering the realities of the asylum to be ethical? I am not objecting to her exposing the truth of treatment in the asylum, however, is her method of feigning “madness” something we would consider ethical today? Why or why not?
3. It is a wonder Dorothea Dix never was confined to an asylum for her own direct actions and political activeness. We have discussed how this was common in her time, yet she remained an independent force of change, taking charge as a woman in a land of men.
Submitted by Lyndsey Clark. I pledge…
1. So far, Nellie Bly is one of the few people we have seen who witnesses asylum life first-hand. How else would you say that her book or research approach is unique?
2. What do you think makes Nellie Bly's interaction with other patients interesting?
Submitted by Erica Banks. I pledge…
1. What does it say that foreign women ended up in the asylum for seemingly nothing? What does this tell us about how insanity was diagnosed?
2. What was the purpose of reporters asking questions about patients? What does this say about the public’s engagement with mental health?
Submitted by Jack Kurz. I pledge…
1. Would a journalist be able to fool people and officials today as Nellie Bly did?
2. If people knew how bad Blackwell's Island was, why didn't anyone try to shut it down or fix it? Was it because they'd rather have the “insane” far away from society, did they not care, or both?
Submitted by Audrey Schroeder. I pledge…
1. How do you feel about the fact that Bly's affectation of an insane person is to have contrarian opinions and be a little garrulous? Was much of particularly female diagnosed insanity really about enforcing social/gender norms? (the answer probably won't surprise you)
2. In Chapter 14, Bly mentions a “perfectly sane” French woman named Josephine Despreau who was seemingly admitted to Blackwell's Island Insane Asylum because of her poor English and a momentary sickness. Was this a common occurrence in the 19th century? Was she really just a victim of prejudice, or is there more nuance to her story than was presented to Bly? (We could also make connections to the “Judge Duffy and the Police” chapter)
Submitted by Theron Gertz. I pledge…
Question 1: With patients suffering from beatings, malnourishment, and other abuses how many died at the Blackwell asylum as a result, and what would happen if there was a death?
Question 2: How easily could the press get access to asylums in general?
Submitted by Griffin Nameroff