-
Seasonal Offer:
This title is part of our Seasonal Offers promotion.
Bedlam: London and Its Mad
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store for more details. |
Special Offers and Product Promotions
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
...a lively and concise book...as a brief guide to its subject this book cannot be matched --Daily Express, September 5, 2008
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
elegrantly written and richly anecdotal study
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This has been hovering on my radar for a while and on my wishlist for months, so when I spotted it in the library I had to pick it up. It's a terrifying book but I am so glad to have read it. As the title suggests, it is predominantly a history of the Bethlehem asylum in London, soon contracted to 'Bedlam' in local slang and quickly fixing the term in our language as a byword for chaos.
Bedlam's history is a horrifying tale swimming with chains and straitjackets, ice baths and purging, bleeding and starvation, mania and despair. Arnold draws the reader through the years from Bedlam's conception, into different locations and grand buildings, through the reigns of monarch after monarch. Doctors and superintendents come and go, treatments fluctuate and metamorphose, knowledge grows and changes for the better... eventually. Through the sweep of Bedlam's history, Arnold has included the stories of some of the saddest, quirkiest and most notorious patients to haunt its cells, as well as extending her research to offer the reader a wider historical context and a broader look at the treatment of madness across the country. There is also an interesting chapter on mad women as a cultural construct, including a look at Miss Havisham and Bertha Mason as literary representations of contemporary stereotypes.
As a manic depressive, all I can say is, thank heavens I'm not living my life any time but now. Right up the mid-20th century, people suffering from mental illness have been 'treated' with a host of remedies from the ridiculous to the barbaric to, just occasionally, the hopeful and enlightened. I found this book by turns sad, wry, mind-boggling, thoughtful and plain horrific. I feel like I've come away from it having been educated and enlightened, not to mention harbouring a profound feeling of gratefulness that today's medicine has, for the most part, finally rejected the attitudes and approaches to mental illness that made elements of this book so painful to read. Highly recommended!
Bedlam's history is a horrifying tale swimming with chains and straitjackets, ice baths and purging, bleeding and starvation, mania and despair. Arnold draws the reader through the years from Bedlam's conception, into different locations and grand buildings, through the reigns of monarch after monarch. Doctors and superintendents come and go, treatments fluctuate and metamorphose, knowledge grows and changes for the better... eventually. Through the sweep of Bedlam's history, Arnold has included the stories of some of the saddest, quirkiest and most notorious patients to haunt its cells, as well as extending her research to offer the reader a wider historical context and a broader look at the treatment of madness across the country. There is also an interesting chapter on mad women as a cultural construct, including a look at Miss Havisham and Bertha Mason as literary representations of contemporary stereotypes.
As a manic depressive, all I can say is, thank heavens I'm not living my life any time but now. Right up the mid-20th century, people suffering from mental illness have been 'treated' with a host of remedies from the ridiculous to the barbaric to, just occasionally, the hopeful and enlightened. I found this book by turns sad, wry, mind-boggling, thoughtful and plain horrific. I feel like I've come away from it having been educated and enlightened, not to mention harbouring a profound feeling of gratefulness that today's medicine has, for the most part, finally rejected the attitudes and approaches to mental illness that made elements of this book so painful to read. Highly recommended!
31 of 33 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
After enjoying the authors last outing "Necropolis", I was really looking forward to this book. I am glad to report that this book is even better than the last.
Ms Arnold takes us through a white-knuckle ride of the history of both the institution of Bedlam and the treatment of the mentally ill. No punches are pulled in the gruesome descriptions of the plight of the poor patients.
The book covers a lot of ground and it would have been easy for the writing to get bogged down in a single place but the skill of the author keeps it tripping along making it a very pleasing read overall. Whilst not being overly detailed, this book is a fascinating glimpse into an often ignored subject.
The only negative point I can find is that I would have liked a few more illustrations.
Ms Arnold takes us through a white-knuckle ride of the history of both the institution of Bedlam and the treatment of the mentally ill. No punches are pulled in the gruesome descriptions of the plight of the poor patients.
The book covers a lot of ground and it would have been easy for the writing to get bogged down in a single place but the skill of the author keeps it tripping along making it a very pleasing read overall. Whilst not being overly detailed, this book is a fascinating glimpse into an often ignored subject.
The only negative point I can find is that I would have liked a few more illustrations.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The book does have a large ambition as other reviewers have stated. It was a very interesting novel though I found Necropolis by the author a much more interesting read and put together in a more interesting way. My main difficulty with this text was perhaps that the cases referred to on the back cover were covered in no real depth in the text itself. There were brief references to individual cases and miscarriages of justice and more detail spent on the doctors that governed the institution itself as well as the architecture of the different locations for Bedlam.
For those interested in the history of this period it is a good read, even with the context of the book in the details surrounding Bedlam at this time.
For those interested in the history of this period it is a good read, even with the context of the book in the details surrounding Bedlam at this time.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Kindle Edition Incomplete
I've sent this back for a refund as it's missing the images from the printed version. Where an image should appear, the words "Image Not Available" appear. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Gavin Jones
rambling tome filled with irrelevance
I had high hopes for this book and am interested in anything to do with mental health. Other reviews made it sound a good bet. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Stef
Great Choice.
An excellent book, I bought it second hand the book came in band new condition which is also awesome. I would definitely recommend this book to any history buffs out there. Read more
Published 13 days ago by Emma
Fascinating history about Bedlam
A well written and thorough history of the Bethlehem Lunatic Asylum from its humble beginnings to today's more humane treatment of mental health patients.
Published 1 month ago by Tefisheep
Completely gripping!
This disturbing and gripping book delves into the history of Bedlam. A place which has given it's very name to the dictionaries as meaning noisy and confused. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Lord Anon
Review of Book Bedlam
Absolutely fascinating and well written book which transported me to the place and times perfectly. Will read again often I believe. Strongly recommend it.
Published 8 months ago by Bellringer
Comprehensive and senstive
A very well written and researched book, although I know have a list of other books I'd like to read...
Published 12 months ago by G. Whalley
A good read but disappointing last chapter
A very readable book. However, I got the sense the author really rushed the last chapter and didnt really explain why the hospital moved to Kent in the early 20th century. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Thalia
very historical!!!
I really loved this book about the mad house bedlam and all the historical facts very well researched. I just wish it had of been longer as i found it all a bit rushed.
Published 13 months ago by helen
Good book shame about the artwork!
While initially I enjoyed this book as the chapters progress the author refers to artwork and maps linked to the hospital and its inmates, unfortunately in the Kindle edition where... Read more
Published 14 months ago by JLOPM
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Health, Family & Lifestyle > Psychology & Psychiatry > History & Philosophy > History
- Books > Health, Family & Lifestyle > Psychology & Psychiatry > Specific Topics > Mental Health & Illness
- Books > History > Britain & Ireland
- Books > History > Cultural History > London
- Books > Science & Nature > Medicine > Diseases & Disorders > Mental Diseases & Disorders
- Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Social Sciences
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
