Out of Her Mind: Women Writing on Madness (Modern Library)

Shannonhouse, Rebecca

ISBN 10: 0679603301 / ISBN 13: 9780679603306

Published by Modern Library (edition First Edition), 2000

About this Item

It's a preowned item in good condition and includes all the pages. It may have some general signs of wear and tear, such as markings, highlighting, slight damage to the cover, minimal wear to the binding, etc., but they will not affect the overall reading experience.

Seller Inventory # 0679603301-11-1

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Out of Her Mind: Women Writing on Madness (Modern Library)
• Publisher: Modern Library (edition First Edition)
• Publication Date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0679603301
• ISBN 13: 9780679603306
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

Ever since doctors first labeled their female patients "hysterical," women have occupied a unique place in the world of mental illness. Whether harboring a dark mood or suffering from a crippling mental illness, such as schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or manic depression, a select few of these women have deftly rendered the psychological turmoil that has touched their lives in writing that ranks among the most intriguing and emotionally compelling in American literature.

In this anthology-the first of its kind Rebecca Shannonhouse has collected the most affecting, finely wrought essays, memoirs, and fiction by women writing on madness. Some of the selections in this volume are literary classics, such as Charlotte Perkins Stetson Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" and an excerpt from Sylvia Plath's The Belljar. Several selections are taken from contemporary works, including Susanna Kaysen's Girl, Interrupted and Lauren Slater's "Black Swans." Still others are published here for the first time, most notably several letters written by Zelda Fitzgerald during her stays in a mental hospital. All these works offer powerful insights into the largely private world of emotional suffering, and at the same time possess the elements of great literature. As a collection, these voices provide a diverse and remarkable chronicle of women struggling with madness.

About the Author

Rebecca Shannonhouse is a freelance writer and editor. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today, and other publications. She lives in New York City.