Mental Illness in the 19th Century

                   The article that I read was “Mental Illness in the 19^th Century” by Carrie Hughes.  This article explained how doctors in the 18^th century did not really care about all of the patients’ illnesses or about them. For starters, this illness started off with being told you were being sent to jail, an alms house or staying home without a treatment. In 1841, a woman named Dorothea Dix was outraged with all the terrible conditions people were in and could not help but try to find a cure for it. Doctors never really cared for these people and could not help but turn them away. Overcrowded hospitals led them to no cure.

            My central point that I am trying to aim for is that many people in the 18^th century were turning away from people that really needed the help. Doctors today care more for patients then any doctor did in the 18^th century. Finally, back then, society showed how much people did not really care about everybody but now nobody leaves one behind.

            My reaction to this article is that I am against what people thought back then and that doctors should have treated all patients equally. I truly feel bad for the patients that had to go through this horrible illness and had incurable treatments. This made me want to come up with a cure for these patients, even though I know I cannot do that.