1. Neo-Victorian Madness : Rediagnosing Nineteenth-Century Mental Illness in Literature and Other Media
- Author
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Sarah E. Maier, Brenda Ayres, Sarah E. Maier, and Brenda Ayres
- Subjects
- Mental illness on television, Historical fiction--History and criticism, Mental illness in literature, Mental illness in motion pictures
- Abstract
Neo-Victorian Madness: Rediagnosing Nineteenth-Century Mental Illness in Literature and Other Media investigates contemporary fiction, cinema and television shows set in the Victorian period that depict mad murderers, lunatic doctors, social dis/ease and madhouses as if many Victorians were “mad.” Such portraits demand a “rediagnosing” of mental illness that was often reduced to only female hysteria or a general malaise in nineteenth-century renditions. This collection of essays explores questions of neo-Victorian representations of moral insanity, mental illness, disturbed psyches or non-normative imaginings as well as considers the important issues of legal righteousness, social responsibility or methods of restraint and corrupt incarcerations. The chapters investigate the self-conscious re-visions, legacies and lessons of nineteenth-century discourses of madness and/or those persons presumed mad rediagnosed by present-day (neo-Victorian) representations informed by post-nineteenth-century psychological insights.
- Published
- 2020