Medical Men, Women of Letters, and Treatments for Eighteenth-Century Hysteria

Journal of Medical Humanities 34 (1):1-14 (2013)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

This paper explores evolving treatments for hysteria in the eighteenth century by examining a selection of works by both physician-writers and educated literary women. The treatments I identify—which range from aggressive bloodlettings, diets, and beatings, to exercise, fresh air, and writing cures—reveal a unique culture of therapy in which female sufferers and doctors exert an influence on one another's notions of what constitutes appropriate management of women's mental illness. A scrutiny of this exchange of ideas suggests that female patients were not simply oppressed and silenced by male practitioners; rather, their collective voice, intellect, and expertise helped to form progressive treatments for eighteenth-century hysteria

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 100,902

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Analytics

Added to PP
2012-11-30

Downloads
48 (#454,963)

6 months
15 (#199,530)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Citations of this work

Add more citations

References found in this work

The wounded storyteller: body, illness, and ethics.Arthur W. Frank - 1995 - Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Add more references