Found at a library book sale!

Overall, Kate Millett is a very smart person and she definitely can write about madness very well. I don't know if it is because I myself have never experienced mania, but it was a little hard to figure out WHY Millett was considered crazy. I wish she had used specific examples of why the people around her kept putting her in looney bins. Or even better: include footnotes from the people who were close to her to tell their side of the story. But other than a weird part involving a horse and her dad, from reading this book, I don't think she is crazy. I think she spoke about depression very well, but maybe that is because I am more familiar with depression rather than mania (at least I think I am.. it's kind of been with me forever). I especially thought it interesting that she would read books for 18 hours a day during the bad times (if only I could read that much!) Her story is very very scary... that she was put into mental hospitals multiple times by her loved ones. Even when she knew her rights, it was difficult to get out of those places. She mentions: How is it possible to "become sane" in a place where everything seems insane? The drugs she was forced to take gave her hallucinations and nightmares. And if anything, Millett says that being locked up takes your confidence away and that surely doesn't help (which also may have led to her depression, she believes). I was a little suspicious that Millett worked in mental hospitals when she was 18... I thought maybe she was saying she was crazy just to write a book. But by the end, Millett convinced me: She says that society uses looney bins to scare people into acting normal. People always have in the back of their mind "I can't do/say/act like that or they will send me to the nuthouse." She thinks that everyone should always be allowed to GO crazy (and that's exactly that, if they GO then they COME BACK) and I agree-- just as long as you are not hurting yourself or others. Everyone around Millett was just waiting for her to GO crazy and I couldn't figure out why... unless she wasn't including any evidence of being crazy in case they want to lock her up again. It goes from that stigma to thinking you need a mental drug for this or that just because you have emotions and that is what scares me most of all. This is why I liked this book. I thought I was the only one that thought "people have reactions to things that happen in their lives. Sometimes they are BLUE. It doesn't mean they need to take medications." And more and more people are losing that. Of course, a lot of people do need medications but MANY people think they need drugs just because they are a little bit sad because their lives aren't perfect.

Sent as a trade to AgnesofBohemia! thanks for swapping!

Sent by Cinnycat