Madness in Its Place: Narratives of Severalls Hospital, 1913-1997 (Memory and Narrative)

This fascinating study presents a unique history of psychiatry in the twentieth century. It brings together the memories and narratives of over sixty patients and workers who lived, or were employed, in Severalls Psychiatric Hospital, Essex, UK. Personal accounts are contextualised both in relation to wider developments and issues in twentieth-century mental health, and in relation to policies and changes in the hospital itself. Organised around the theme of space and place, and drawing upon both quantitative and qualitative material, chapters deal with key areas such as gender divisions, power relations, patterns of admission and discharge, treatments, and the daily lives and routines of patients and nurses of both sexes. This Study Presents A Unique Social History Of Psychiatry In The Twentieth Century. It Brings Together The Memories And Narratives Of Over Sixty Patients And Workers Who Lived, Or Were Employed, In Severalls Psychiatric Hospital, Essex, England. Personal Accounts Are Contextualised Both In Relation To Wider Developments And Issues In Twentieth-century Mental Health, And In Relation To Policies And Changes In The Hospital Itself. Madness In Its Place Provides An Unusual And Very Accessible Account Of Trends And Changes In The History Of Psychiatry During The Twentieth Century, While At The Same Time Offering A Lively Narrative Of The Daily Lives Of Those Who Worked And Lived In A Typical Psychiatric Hospital. It Is Valuable Reading For Anybody With An Interest In Mental Health, Hospitals And Hospitalisation, And Social Policy. 1. Space, Time And Madness. Place For Madness. Ideal Of An Asylum. Putting The Ideal Into Practice. Fears Of Pollution. Place And Social Change -- 2. At The Gate. Boards And Boundaries. Patients' Entries And Exits: Certification, Sectioning. Staff Entries And Exits -- 3. Corridor Of Power. Medical Superintendent: The Early Years. Middle Years. 1960s: Russell Barton. End Of An Era -- 4. Great Divide. Male And Female Nurses. Female And Male Psychiatrists -- 5. On The Female Side. Admissions And Reasons For Coming To Severalls. Clothing And Identity. Ward Routines And Experiences. Work. Friendships And Relationships -- 6. On The Male Side. Engineer's Yard And The Farms. Diana Gittins. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Preliminaries......Page 1 CONTENTS......Page 8 List of illustrations......Page 10 List of tables......Page 11 Acknowledgements......Page 12 1 Introduction: space, time and madness......Page 14 2 At the gate......Page 42 3 The corridor of power......Page 72 4 The great divide......Page 111 5 On the female side......Page 140 6 On the male side......Page 170 7 The space and pace of treatments......Page 202 8 Conclusion......Page 232 Notes......Page 237 Bibliography......Page 245 Index......Page 250 This book provides an unusual and very accessible account of trends and changes in the history of psychiatry during the 20th century, while offering a lively narrative of the daily lives of those who worked and lived in a typical psychiatric hospital