Dorothea Dix
a DJosh Wang
Mr. Raphael
US 1 History Honors
23 March 2013
Dorothea Dix: Mother of American Asylums
Dear Admissions office at the University of the United States, From 1824, Dorothea Dix has proved to be valuable to social reform in the United States. After visiting multiple prisons and seeing the mentally insane housed together with criminals, Dix began a national movement to treat the insane in more benevolent ways. Her religious beliefs also influenced her to recognize the need for rehabilitation instead of punishment. Although she was not completely successful in receiving a federal grant for lands to be used to build asylums in the US, Dix overcame adversity and was successful in convincing certain state legislatures such as Massachusetts to care for the mentally ill. Dorothea Dix advocated the institution of asylums in the US, and should be accepted into the University of the United States because of her successes in providing humane treatment for the insane. Throughout her life, Dix devoted herself to improving the living conditions of the insane. Influenced by the educational reform movement which was used to provide all people with basic learning, she was asked to teach at the East Cambridge House of Correction in 1824. In her diary, she wrote “I started to teach there because I was doing good deeds for the church... When I first walked in I saw... the tortured woman chained to the walls just hanging there” (Dix). Soon after, she began visiting Massachusetts prisons and almshouses, gathering information on their horrid conditions. According to Dix, the prisons contained “insane men and women paralyzed by cold, wallowing in their own filth, and confined in plank sheds without light” (Hamilton 2). In her most famous address, she stated that the insane were found in “cages, closets, cellars, stalls, pens! Chained, naked, beaten with rods, and lashed into obedience” (Warder). After visiting several institutions with similar conditions, Dix led a
Mr. Raphael
US 1 History Honors
23 March 2013
Dorothea Dix: Mother of American Asylums
Dear Admissions office at the University of the United States, From 1824, Dorothea Dix has proved to be valuable to social reform in the United States. After visiting multiple prisons and seeing the mentally insane housed together with criminals, Dix began a national movement to treat the insane in more benevolent ways. Her religious beliefs also influenced her to recognize the need for rehabilitation instead of punishment. Although she was not completely successful in receiving a federal grant for lands to be used to build asylums in the US, Dix overcame adversity and was successful in convincing certain state legislatures such as Massachusetts to care for the mentally ill. Dorothea Dix advocated the institution of asylums in the US, and should be accepted into the University of the United States because of her successes in providing humane treatment for the insane. Throughout her life, Dix devoted herself to improving the living conditions of the insane. Influenced by the educational reform movement which was used to provide all people with basic learning, she was asked to teach at the East Cambridge House of Correction in 1824. In her diary, she wrote “I started to teach there because I was doing good deeds for the church... When I first walked in I saw... the tortured woman chained to the walls just hanging there” (Dix). Soon after, she began visiting Massachusetts prisons and almshouses, gathering information on their horrid conditions. According to Dix, the prisons contained “insane men and women paralyzed by cold, wallowing in their own filth, and confined in plank sheds without light” (Hamilton 2). In her most famous address, she stated that the insane were found in “cages, closets, cellars, stalls, pens! Chained, naked, beaten with rods, and lashed into obedience” (Warder). After visiting several institutions with similar conditions, Dix led a
Cited: Dix, Dorothea. "Diary of Dorothea Dix." Youngnationprojectsheryl.blogspot.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2013. <http://youngnationprojectsheryl.blogspot.com/2008/04/diary-of-dorothea-dix.html>. Kokontis, Megan. "Dorothea Dix: Student, Reformer and Crusader." Digitalcommons.iwu.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2013. <http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=constructing>. Neil, Hamilton A. "Dix, Dorothea." Fofweb.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <http://www.fofweb.com/NuHistory/default.asp?ItemID=WE52>. Viney, Wayne. "Dorothea Dix." 25.uua.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <http://www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/dorotheadix.html>. Warder, Graham. "Miss Dorothea Dix." Disabilitymuseum.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <http://www.disabilitymuseum.org/dhm/edu/essay.html?id=35>.