Ten Days in a Mad-House by Nellie Bly informs readers about the hard-ships, mistreatment, and abuse of power that Nellie herself witnessed inside of the Women’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell’s island. During the 6-chapter recollection, Nellie focuses on how the patients are mentally and physically mistreated by the nurses, how the nurses and doctors abuse their power and money, and how the women are suppressed from ever getting a chance to prove their sanity. Bly’s main purpose of her undercover mission was to expose the reality of mental institutions and force a reform so that patients would receive better treatment. Bly could not believe what she saw and felt obligated to start a change. This paper will explain how the women’s rights movement during the 19th and 20th centuries helped many women push for change that would grant them equality. 

Ten Days in a Mad-House shocked the world when it was published in 1887. Nellie Bly had fooled a mental health institution and exposed their dirty secrets through an undercover assignment. Chapter 8 tells the story of when Bly first arrived at the insane asylum, with no idea what to expect. She soon realized that the system was unfair because the patients are “committed without ample trial” and it was basically impossible to prove their sanity (Bly 282). Bly witnessed a German woman be given no chance to have a conversation in her native language, and therefore she would never have a chance to prove her sanity. Bly explains the horrors she saw and the abuse that the patients endured. The women were forced to look synonymous, endure malnutrition, suffer in the freezing cold, and be physically and verbally abused. Bly could not believe that this was going on and nothing was being done to change it. Upon leaving the asylum, she published her story and helped to change the rules and regulations of mental institutions so that patients would be treated humanely. 

In a 2008 article titled Women Journalists in American Culture and Fiction, the author focuses on the journalism field. During the 19th century, women were not very involved in journalism as the field was dominated by men. The article described Jean Marie Lute, who wrote a book that sought to “reclaim a rightful place for women in journalism” (Weiner 827). Lute argued that women helped to grow the industry and deserve to be a part of it. This relates to the topic of gender inequality that is often discussed regarding the 19th and 20th century. Nellie Bly was an aspiring female journalist and was not able to break out into the mainstream world until she wrote Ten Days in a Mad-House. However, Bly changed the industry, and created a new style of reporting known as stunt reporting. Women would go undercover into different environments and situations to get the most accurate details and accounts for their writing. This shows the extremes that women had to endure to get attention from their writing. The idea of equality was too revolutionary in the 19th century in the eyes of women who desperately wanted equal opportunities as men. Nellie Bly wanted change for women in mental health institutions and in the same vein, Jean Lute wanted change for women in the journalism industry.

The article titled Taking Control: Feminist Alternatives to Mental Institutions talks about women’s health and how it was hard to watch so many women be sent to mental institutions. It states that the institutions were “known for its brutal treatment and lack of recognition of women’s situations” (Rommal & Stevens 10). The article goes on to explain many different alternatives to insane asylums that work much better to improve the patient’s mental health. The Elizabeth Stone House opened on July 15th as a way for mentally ill women to get help without the negative effects that the insane asylums had. The upstairs of the house provides an “extended supportive living environment” for the women. The downstairs serves as a “short-term transition center” for women who are suffering from emotion difficulty or living in a dangerous situation (10). The patients can live in comfort and safety for 2 weeks so that they can figure things out and begin to change their situation. This article shows how women’s rights were in full swing during the 19th and 20th century and many changes were being made. Given this article was written after Nellie Bly’s story had been published, it is possible that Ten Days in a Mad-House inspired the women of the Cambridge Women’s Center to come up with alternatives for mental institutions.

This paper explores the significance of the women’s rights movement specifically in relation to mental institutions and the abuse that patients endured. Nellie Bly’s story about her undercover assignment in the insane asylum sparked a lot of shock about what goes on behind closed doors, and helped to start the modification that was needed. Weiner’s 2008 article explains how women were shut out from the journalism industry due to the dominance of men. They struggled to get a solid ground in the career, but gained more recognition after adopting Nelly Bly’s “stunt reporting” tactic. Lastly, Rommal & Steven’s 1975 article explains an alternative solution to the insane asylums that were commonly used to treat mentally ill patients. The solution focused on giving the women a comfortable place to get help without having to worry about the living conditions and abuse that came with the insane asylums. During the 19th and 20th century, many women were beginning to realize that they deserved equality. While it is difficult to determine what is justified as complete equality, the actions of many women have helped to improve gender equality greatly and will continue to do so.
