Link: https://wellcomelibrary.org/item/b19307378#?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=6&z=-0.0432%2C-0.2108%2C1.1111%2C0.8073
This artifact is an image of a review from a doctor, assumably an official of a sort of health-board. He appears to be writing an inspection of a privately run mental asylum in England. This is very similar to Mr. Rochester, who is running a private asylum of his own for Bertha. The first part of this excerpt that caught my eye was the amount of attendants they have working there. There are “19 female attendants and 17 male attendants” for 50 patients. This means that there are many people there to help the patients, and it is even mentioned that the patients are not “gloomy or confined” and that they speak “pleasurably” of their time at Ticehurst. This appears to be in stark contrast to the conditions of Bertha. Bertha only has one attendant there in Grace Poole, so if things get out of control there is no one else there to make sure that she does not hurt herself or others, which continues to raise problems. Also, she is kept in the same room her entire life at Thornfield, which is the definition of confinement. It is mentioned in the book that her room is not well lit either. Trapping a mentally ill person in a dark room is not going to help their health at all, and I am sure Bertha would not describe her time in Thornfield as “pleasurable. If the conditions listed above are what is required to rehabilitate someone’s mental health during this time period, then it is no wonder that Bertha continuously gets worse and worse. A review of Mr. Rochester’s private mental asylum would most likely not be as glowing as this one.
