I have watched patients stand and gaze longingly toward the city they in all likelihood will never enter again. It means liberty and life; it seems so near, and yet heaven is not further from hell
Nellie BlyRead
People in the world can never imagine the length of days to those in asylums. They seemed never ending, and we welcomed any event that might give us something to think about as well as talk of.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the profound experience of individuals in asylums, emphasizing the overwhelming and seemingly endless nature of their days.
Nellie Bly's quote sheds light on the incredible amount of time that those in asylums experience, which can feel endless due to isolation and a lack of mental stimulation. It conveys a sense of longing for events or conversations to break the monotony and provide a sense of connection to the outside world, highlighting the importance of engagement for mental health.
Themes
AsylumMental HealthIsolationTimeEngagement
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in discussions about mental health awareness during public seminars.
More from Nellie Bly
All quotes →How can a doctor judge a woman's sanity by merely bidding her good morning and refusing to hear her pleas for release? Even the sick ones know it is useless to say anything, for the answer will be that it is their imagination.
Nellie BlyRead
'VERY WELL,' I SAID ANGRILY, 'START THE MAN, AND I'LL START THE SAME DAY FOR SOME OTHER NEWSPAPER AND BEAT HIM.'
Nellie BlyRead
I always had a desire to know asylum life more thoroughly - a desire to be convinced that the most helpless of God's creatures, the insane, were cared for kindly and properly.
Nellie BlyRead
COULD I PASS A WEEK IN THE INSANE WARD AT BLACKWELL'S ISLAND? I SAID I COULD AND I WOULD. AND I DID.
Nellie BlyRead
I shuddered to think how completely the insane were in the power of their keepers, and how one could weep and plead for release, and all of no avail, if the keepers were so minded.
Nellie BlyRead
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