"I saw them naked, covered in straps. They
only had a bit of hay with which to shelter themselves
from the cold humidity of the floor on
which they lay. They were starved, without air
to breathe, nor water to quench their thirst, without
the bare necessities of life. I saw them
truly surrendered to the warders, infected, without
air, electricity, imprisoned in places where
one would hesitate to leave wild animals,
and that the luxuries of the government are
kept in the great capitals”.
(Esquirol – "Des établissements consacrés aux aliénés en France". 1818).
The french psycatist Jean-Étienne Esquirol was a disciple of Phillippe Pinel, considered the father of psychiatry. In this short extract, Esquirol describes a place set apart for the alienated of France in 1818.
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