Customers and patrons of the mad-trade: the management of lunacy in eighteenth-century London: with the complete text of John Monro's 1766 case book / Jonathan Andrews and Andrew Scull

This book is a lively commentary on the eighteenth-century mad-business, its practitioners, its patients (or "customers"), and its patrons, viewed through the unique lens of the private case book kept by the most famous mad-doctor in Augustan England, Dr. John Monro (1715-1791). Monro's case book, comprising the doctor's jottings on patients he saw in the course of his private practice--patients drawn from a great variety of social strata--offers an extraordinary window into the subterranean world of the mad-trade in eighteenth-century London. The volume concludes with a complete edition of the case book itself, transcribed in full with editorial annotations by the authors. In the fragmented stories Monro's case book provides, Andrews and Scull find a poignant underworld of human psychological distress, some of it strange and some quite familiar. They place these "cases" in a real world where John Monro and othersuccessful doctors were practicing, not to say inventing, the diagnosis and treatment of madness. This Book Is A Lively Commentary On The Eighteenth-century Mad-business, Its Practitioners, Its Patients (or Customers), And Its Patrons, Viewed Through The Unique Lens Of The Private Case Book Kept By The Most Famous Mad-doctor In Augustan England, Dr. John Monro (1715-1791). Monro's Case Book, Comprising The Doctor's Jottings On Patients Drawn From A Great Variety Of Social Strata - Offers An Extraordinary Window Into The Subterranean World Of The Mad-trade In Eighteenth-century London. Monro Was The Physician To Bethlem Hospital And The Second In A Dynasty Of Dr. Monros Who Monopolized That Office For Over A Century. His Hospital, The Oldest And Most Famous/infamous Psychiatric Establishment In The English-speaking World, Was The Mystical, Mythical Bedlam Of Our Collective Imaginings. But Monro Also Had An Extensive Private Practice Ministering To The Mad And Was The Proprietor Of Several Private Metropolitan Madhouses.^ His Case Book Testifies To The Scope And Prosperity Of Monro's Trade In Lunacy, And Jonathan Andrews And Andrew Scull Brilliantly Exploit The Opportunity It Affords To Look Inside The Mad-business. The Volume Concludes With A Complete Edition Of The Case Book Itself, Transcribed In Full With Editorial Annotations By The Authors. Apparently The Only Such Document To Survive From Eighteenth-century England, The Case Book Covers No More Than A Year Of Monro's Practice, Yet It Provides Rare And Often Intimate Details On A Hundred Of His Private Patients. As Andrews And Scull Show, Monro's Notes, When Read With Care And Interpreted Within A Broader Historical Context, Document An Unparalelled Perspective On The Relatively Fluid, Reciprocal, And Negotiable Relations That Existed Between The Mad-doctor And His Patients, Their Families, And Other Practitioners.^ The Fragmented Stories Reveal A Poignant Underworld Of Human Psychological Distress, And Andrews And Scull Place These Cases In A Real World Where John Monro And Other Successful Doctors Were Practicing (and Inventing) The Diagnosis And Treatment Of Madness.--jacket. Managing Lunacy In Eighteenth-century London -- Customers, Patrons, And Their Mad-doctor -- A Rare Resource: John Monro's Case Book -- Profiling Patients And Patterns Of Practice -- The Craft Of Consultation: Managing Patients And Their Problems -- Diagnosing The Mad -- Religion, Madness, And The Case Book -- Treating Patients And Getting Paid -- Being Mad In Eighteenth-century England: Patients' Views Of Their Own Illnesses -- John Monro's 1766 Case Book. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 177-201) And Index. "This book is a lively commentary on the eighteenth-century mad-business, its practitioners, its patients (or "customers"), and its patrons, viewed through the unique lens of the private case book kept by the most famous mad-doctor in Augustan England, Dr. John Monro (1715-1791). Monro's case book, comprising the doctor's jottings on patients drawn from a great variety of social strata - offers an extraordinary window into the subterranean world of the mad-trade in eighteenth-century London. Monro was the physician to Bethlem Hospital and the second in a dynasty of Dr. Monros who monopolized that office for over a century. His hospital, the oldest and most famous/infamous psychiatric establishment in the English-speaking world, was the mystical, mythical Bedlam of our collective imaginings. But Monro also had an extensive private practice ministering to the mad and was the proprietor of several private metropolitan madhouses. His case book testifies to the scope and prosperity of Monro's "trade in lunacy," and Jonathan Andrews and Andrew Scull brilliantly exploit the opportunity it affords to look inside the mad-business." "The volume concludes with a complete edition of the case book itself, transcribed in full with editorial annotations by the authors. Apparently the only such document to survive from eighteenth-century England, the case book covers no more than a year of Monro's practice, yet it provides rare and often intimate details on a hundred of his private patients. As Andrews and Scull show, Monro's notes, when read with care and interpreted within a broader historical context, document an unparalelled perspective on the relatively fluid, reciprocal, and negotiable relations that existed between the mad-doctor and his patients, their families, and other practitioners. The fragmented stories reveal a poignant underworld of human psychological distress, and Andrews and Scull place these "cases" in a real world where John Monro and other successful doctors were practicing (and inventing) the diagnosis and treatment of madness."--BOOK JACKET. Illustrations......Page 10 Preface......Page 12 Acknowledgments......Page 16 Part One: Managing Lunacy in Eighteenth-Century London......Page 18 1. Customers, Patrons, and Their Mad-Doctor......Page 22 2. A Rare Resource: John Monro’s Case Book......Page 30 3. Profiling Patients and Patterns of Practice......Page 45 4. The Craft of Consultation: Managing Patients and Their Problems......Page 62 5. Diagnosing the Mad......Page 75 6. Religion, Madness, and the Case Book......Page 99 7. Treating Patients and Getting Paid......Page 109 8. Being Mad in Eighteenth- Century England: Patients’ Views of Their Own Illnesses......Page 124 Part Two: John Monro’s 1766 Case Book......Page 134 Notes......Page 260 Bibliography......Page 318 Index......Page 344 The history of psychiatry, as David Ingleby wittily remarked some years ago, once resembled "the histories of colonial wars[: it told] us more about the relations between the imperial powers than about the 'third world' of the mental patients themselves."