The Architecture of Madness

Insane Asylums in the United States

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Last edited by kd5tvi
April 18, 2022 | History

The Architecture of Madness

Insane Asylums in the United States

Kindle Edition
  • 5.00 ·
  • 1 Rating
  • 5 Want to read
  • 0 Currently reading
  • 1 Have read

Kindle edition

Publish Date
Language
English
Pages
256

Buy this book

Previews available in: English

Edition Availability
Cover of: Architecture of Madness
Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English
Cover of: The Architecture of Madness
The Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States (Architecture, Landscape and Amer Culture)
April 19, 2007, Univ Of Minnesota Press
Hardcover in English
Cover of: The architecture of madness
The architecture of madness: insane asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English
Cover of: Architecture of Madness
Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English
Cover of: The Architecture of Madness
The Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States
April 12, 2007, University of Minnesota Press
Digital, Kindle, E Book in English - Kindle Edition
Cover of: The Architecture of Madness
The Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States (Architecture, Landscape and Amer Culture)
April 12, 2007, Univ Of Minnesota Press
Paperback in English
Cover of: Architecture of Madness
Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English
Cover of: The architecture of madness
The architecture of madness: insane asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English
Cover of: Architecture of Madness
Architecture of Madness: Insane Asylums in the United States
2007, University of Minnesota Press
in English

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Book Details


Edition Notes

Kindle Edition. Receives updates to current editions of the book in same E-Book purchased.

Published in
Minnesota, USA
Copyright Date
April 12, 2007

Contributors

Drawings
Kevin Bell

The Physical Object

Format
Digital, Kindle, E Book
Number of pages
256

ID Numbers

Open Library
OL27936911M
Amazon ID (ASIN)
B0049P222Q

Source records

Better World Books record

Work Description

Elaborately conceived, grandly constructed insane asylums—ranging in appearance from classical temples to Gothic castles—were once a common sight looming on the outskirts of American towns and cities. Many of these buildings were razed long ago, and those that remain stand as grim reminders of an often cruel system. For much of the nineteenth century, however, these asylums epitomized the widely held belief among doctors and social reformers that insanity was a curable disease and that environment—architecture in particular—was the most effective means of treatment.

In The Architecture of Madness, Carla Yanni tells a compelling story of therapeutic design, from America’s earliest purpose—built institutions for the insane to the asylum construction frenzy in the second half of the century. At the center of Yanni’s inquiry is Dr. Thomas Kirkbride, a Pennsylvania-born Quaker, who in the 1840s devised a novel way to house the mentally diseased that emphasized segregation by severity of illness, ease of treatment and surveillance, and ventilation. After the Civil War, American architects designed Kirkbride-plan hospitals across the country.

Before the end of the century, interest in the Kirkbride plan had begun to decline. Many of the asylums had deteriorated into human warehouses, strengthening arguments against the monolithic structures advocated by Kirkbride. At the same time, the medical profession began embracing a more neurological approach to mental disease that considered architecture as largely irrelevant to its treatment.

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Download catalog record: RDF / JSON / OPDS | Wikipedia citation
April 18, 2022 Edited by kd5tvi Edited without comment.
December 29, 2021 Edited by ImportBot import existing book
August 22, 2020 Edited by ISBNbot2 normalize ISBN
August 20, 2020 Edited by ImportBot import existing book
April 11, 2020 Created by Ibuddy66 Added new book.