The film of Zoe Heller's book Notes on a Scandal didn't get a great review on 'Newsnight Review' last night, but I will still see it, I loved the book (though it took a few attempts), one of the few books I actually finished without forcing myself though the pages. I just finished Per Olov Enquist's The Story of Blanche & Marie, a fictionalisation of the friendship between Marie Curie & her assistant, Blanche Wittman. There is a description of the ovarian compressor, a contraption of screws and leather that was used to treat ovarian pain in 'hysterical' women in late 19th/early 20th century. Truly chilling stuff. I imagined it being a treatment for ME/CFS in the bio-psycho-social circles, who still don't believe we are truly physically ill. . .
4 comments:
I will seek out a copy of 'The Story of Blanche and Marie'. Sounds like a goody. Have you read Sebastian Faulks 'Human Traces'? A history of the development of psychoanalyis in fictional form. A top read.
blanche & marie is quite abstract in bits, but i kind of liked it, i wanted to keep reading - haven't read any seb faulks, but this sounds like my thing.
While in Hawai'i last year, I saw a play called "Hysterical", about the invention of the vibrator. Apparently the contraption was originally intended for the treatment of hysteria, by the Victorians, naturally.
Was really happy to hear the wee nephew is on the mend. Some weird quirk whereby word verification refused to acknowledge I have spelt it correctly several times made me scream and give up trying to send my original comment on that. It has happened before, too. Let's see if this one makes it.
Hey Anna Mr, Yes, the Victorians were a strange bunch.
Thanks for wee nephew thoughts.
Word verification has just gone to the dogs, I think we are all having probs...
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