The asylum
How long did Nellie Bly stay at the asylum on Blackwell’s Island?
She spent ten days and nights there.
What newspaper sent Nellie Bly on her undercover mission?
The New York World assigned her the task.
What point of view does Bly use to tell her story?
First-person, allowing readers to experience events through her perspective.
What larger issue did Bly’s investigation expose?
The inhumane treatment and wrongful confinement of women in mental asylums.
What physical feature did Bly focus on when practicing how to look insane?
She focused on her eyes, keeping them wide open and unblinking to mimic the “staring” look she believed insane people had.
Under what fake name did Nellie Bly enter the asylum?
Nellie Brown.
What was Bly’s goal in undertaking this mission?
To write a truthful, firsthand account of how the insane were treated in New York’s asylums.
How does Bly balance seriousness and humor in her writing?
She uses witty, ironic comments (like joking about her “crazy business”) to make dark experiences more readable and human.
How did her work help lead to change?
Her report sparked public outrage and led to improvements in funding and oversight for mental institutions.
How did Bly mentally prepare herself for her performance the night before she began her mission?
She read ghost stories, imagined frightening situations, and stared at herself in the mirror until she felt genuinely nervous and disturbed.
Which handcraft occupied many of the female inmates?
knitting
How did Bly prepare herself to appear insane?
She practiced expressions and behavior in front of a mirror, widened her eyes, and read ghost stories to unsettle herself.
What sensory details does she use to make her descriptions vivid?
She includes sounds (loud bells, heavy footsteps), smells (filthy cabins, tobacco juice), and sights (bare rooms, rough attendants) to immerse the reader.
What did Bly discover about the sanity of some patients?
Many women were completely sane, but once labeled “insane,” no one believed them.
How did Bly know her act was convincing once she began at the Temporary Home for Females
The assistant matron, Mrs. Stanard, became visibly alarmed by Bly’s “sad” and “frightened” talk — especially when Bly said “They all look crazy, and I am afraid of them” — proving her act had successfully fooled others.
What were the two possible ways Bly considered for getting herself committed?
Feign insanity at the house of friends and be committed by doctors, or
Go through the police courts as a poor, unknown woman.
Why did she choose to go through the police courts rather than rely on friends or doctors?
She didn’t want to involve her friends or fake poverty; she wanted to be committed as an unknown poor woman, just like real patients.
How does her tone change throughout the piece?
It shifts from adventurous curiosity at the start to empathy and moral outrage by the end.
How does her story comment on gender and class?
Poor or friendless women were easily dismissed and powerless, showing the inequality and sexism of the time.
What internal fear did Bly confess while practicing her insanity act?
She admitted she was afraid that pretending to be insane might actually drive her insane, showing how deeply she threw herself into the role.
What did Bly notice about how doctors judged her sanity once she was inside?
The more sanely she acted, the crazier they thought she was — only one doctor recognized her normal behavior.
What did her editor warn her about before she began the assignment?
The editor said, “I am afraid of that chronic smile of yours,” warning her to take the mission seriously.
Why did Bly emphasize truth and honesty in her reporting?
She wanted to reveal real conditions, not exaggerate or sensationalize them, so reform could be based on fact.
What moral or message does Bly leave readers with?
That truth and compassion must guide society, and that exposing injustice is the first step toward reform.
What ethical principle is most challenged when a journalist uses deception to gain access to a story?
Truthfulness and transparency