Women and Madness: When is a Woman Mad and Who is it Who Decides?

By Phyllis Chesler

Book Overview

Feminist Icon Phyllis Chesler's Pioneering Work, Women and Madness, Remains Startlingly relevant today, over thirty years since its initial publication in 1972. With over 2.5 million copies sold, this... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385026714
• ISBN13: 9780385026710
• Release Date: January 1972
• Publisher: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
• Length: 359 Pages
• Weight: 1.23 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 5.5" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

We have paid the price for patriarchal privilege

Dr. Chesler casts her clear eyed vision over the field of psychiatry/psychology and unveils the sexism that underlies the history and the practice of the "art." Who knows how much untold damage has been caused by those who understand little about women as a sex and could care less, as long as they establish their careers? Incorporating the mythology of women as metaphor, Chesler also paints a picture of how we, as women, have paid the price for patriarchal privilege. I read this book 20 years ago, and I just read it again. It was an enjoyable this time as it was then, maybe even more so, with the deeper understanding I have now about the roots of feminism.The only thing I wish she had addressed in this revised edition is deinstitutionalization and its affects on women. Perhaps another time? Soon?