Nellie Bly: What Girls are REALLY Good For
Overcoming an emotional and short of peace childhood, Nellie Bly became independent. Her independence challenged societal viewpoints of women and proved just exactly what girls are really good for.
After continuous denial of opportunities she hoped for, she utilized her emotions and wrote into Pittsburgh Dispatch. This letter highlighted every flaw that the newspaper had written regarding the negative representations of woman. She signed herself under a snarky alias, and was shocked when she heard back. The Dispatch not only read her rebuttal, but printed it, and offered Nellie a full time job at the paper. Although she was a popular columnist, she was specifically ask to only write pieces that addressed woman, as it was a strong suit of hers.
Ten Days in A Mad-House is one of Nellie Bly's most influential pieces, making Bly one of the most famous journalists in the United States. Bly became an undercover detective, if you will, to have an inside eye on just how the mental institution operated. She posted as mentally insane, mimicking other ruled insane admits. She reports to have been held down, abused, dragged by her hair, and more endurances of torture. She explains that out of all 1,600 patients, the asylum had 16 doctors, where only 2 could quality as "caring". She shared that while on a boat, being moved from temporary holding to a long time hold in the asylum, a woman turned to her and said "this is a place we don't ever leave".
In her book, she shared in the introduction "I am happy to be able to state as a result of my visit to the asylum and the exposures consequent thereon, that the City of New York has appropriated $1,000,000 more per annum than ever before for the care of the insane. So I have at least the satisfaction of knowing that the poor unfortunates will be the better cared for because of my work."
While still working as a writer, Nellie Bly died in 1922 from pneumonia.
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