“She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story”
Harriet Prescott Spofford’s female protagonists are complex women who often aim to appear as good mothers and wives, sometimes at the cost of denying their sexuality and creativity as they tend to their families and become burdened with responsibilities. The persistent myth that women found fulfillm...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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European Association for American Studies
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| Series: | European Journal of American Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/15277 |
| _version_ | 1797310355893911552 |
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| author | Sirpa Salenius |
| author_facet | Sirpa Salenius |
| author_sort | Sirpa Salenius |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Harriet Prescott Spofford’s female protagonists are complex women who often aim to appear as good mothers and wives, sometimes at the cost of denying their sexuality and creativity as they tend to their families and become burdened with responsibilities. The persistent myth that women found fulfillment only in marriage and motherhood, Spofford seems to suggest, failed to reflect the reality of all nineteenth-century women. This essay will examine the female protagonist in “Her Story,” which is one of the brilliant short narratives in which Spofford questions gender roles and expectations in the period’s patriarchal society. At the same time, it contributes to the national discussion about mental illness and asylums, pointing out how women, just like “lunatics,” were deprived of many rights and liberties and how their bodies, minds, and behavior operated in accordance to social presumptions and were even often controlled by figures of authority. The protagonist’s desires and circumstances are viewed through her “madness,” which Spofford offers, to some extent, as a politics of survival. However, central to the story is the identity conflict experienced by the transgressive, music-loving woman who follows the period’s gender-specific expectations, trying to adjust into the role of wife and mother, while also assuming some of the professional responsibilities of her husband. As a consequence, she suffers from anxiety over work, family, and marriage, which leads to physical and mental exhaustion evident in the symptomatic paranoia and violent outbursts that are misdiagnosed as her “madness.” The story thus focuses on the problems faced by modern women. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T01:41:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e42ee88fafa84059a4acda6f4b257160 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1991-9336 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T01:41:47Z |
| publisher | European Association for American Studies |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of American Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-e42ee88fafa84059a4acda6f4b2571602024-02-14T13:22:01ZengEuropean Association for American StudiesEuropean Journal of American Studies1991-933614310.4000/ejas.15277“She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story”Sirpa SaleniusHarriet Prescott Spofford’s female protagonists are complex women who often aim to appear as good mothers and wives, sometimes at the cost of denying their sexuality and creativity as they tend to their families and become burdened with responsibilities. The persistent myth that women found fulfillment only in marriage and motherhood, Spofford seems to suggest, failed to reflect the reality of all nineteenth-century women. This essay will examine the female protagonist in “Her Story,” which is one of the brilliant short narratives in which Spofford questions gender roles and expectations in the period’s patriarchal society. At the same time, it contributes to the national discussion about mental illness and asylums, pointing out how women, just like “lunatics,” were deprived of many rights and liberties and how their bodies, minds, and behavior operated in accordance to social presumptions and were even often controlled by figures of authority. The protagonist’s desires and circumstances are viewed through her “madness,” which Spofford offers, to some extent, as a politics of survival. However, central to the story is the identity conflict experienced by the transgressive, music-loving woman who follows the period’s gender-specific expectations, trying to adjust into the role of wife and mother, while also assuming some of the professional responsibilities of her husband. As a consequence, she suffers from anxiety over work, family, and marriage, which leads to physical and mental exhaustion evident in the symptomatic paranoia and violent outbursts that are misdiagnosed as her “madness.” The story thus focuses on the problems faced by modern women.https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/15277madnesswomenHarriet Prescott Spoffordgender rolesconfessionalsinsane asylums |
| spellingShingle | Sirpa Salenius “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” European Journal of American Studies madness women Harriet Prescott Spofford gender roles confessionals insane asylums |
| title | “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” |
| title_full | “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” |
| title_fullStr | “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” |
| title_full_unstemmed | “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” |
| title_short | “She Was the Mad Woman”: Misdiagnosed Madness in Harriet Prescott Spofford’s “Her Story” |
| title_sort | she was the mad woman misdiagnosed madness in harriet prescott spofford s her story |
| topic | madness women Harriet Prescott Spofford gender roles confessionals insane asylums |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/15277 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sirpasalenius shewasthemadwomanmisdiagnosedmadnessinharrietprescottspoffordsherstory |