Moral Imbecility and the Problem of Knowledge in Progressive America, 1880-1920
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
Degeneration, Gender, and American Identity in the Early Fiction of Edgar Rice Burroughs James Biggs Claremont Graduate University, [email protected]
LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University Volume 3 | Issue 1 Article 2 2013 Degeneration, Gender, and American Identity in the Early Fiction of Edgar Rice Burroughs James Biggs Claremont Graduate University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.claremont.edu/lux Recommended Citation Biggs, James (2013) "Degeneration, Gender, and American Identity in the Early Fiction of Edgar Rice Burroughs," LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University: Vol. 3: Iss. 1, Article 2. Available at: http://scholarship.claremont.edu/lux/vol3/iss1/2 Biggs: Degeneration, Gender, and American Identity in the Early Fiction of Edgar Rice Burroughs Biggs 1 Degeneration, Gender, and American Identity in the Early Fiction of Edgar Rice Burroughs James Biggs Claremont Graduate University School of Arts and Humanities - History Abstract Edgar Rice Burroughs rendered a particular construction of womanhood as a remedy for national degeneration and neurasthenia. Progressive-era Americans like Burroughs wondered whether the developmental forces that shaped industrial society might also threaten the character and institutions upon which they believed American society and civilization functioned. Middle-class American observers worried that the character traits responsible for the rise of American greatness were undermined by that very success. In particular, they thought the demands of urban life resulted in neurasthenia, the loss of “nervous energy.” Burroughs employed the powerfully symbolic Pocahontas narrative to construct a vision of womanhood that offered the possibility of redeeming a degenerate and neurasthenic civilization. Burroughs’s construction of womanhood shares much with the traditional ideology of domesticity, yet at the same time challenged Progressive notions of femininity. -
1994 General Correspondence
University of North Florida UNF Digital Commons Division on Women and Crime Documents and American Society of Criminology - Division on Correspondence Women and Crime 1994 1994 General Correspondence American Society of Criminology. Division on Women and Crime Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/dwctext Part of the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons Recommended Citation 1994 General Correspondence. 1994. American Society of Criminology - Division on Women and Crime Collection. University of North Florida, Thomas G. Carpenter Library Special Collections and Archives. UNF Digital Commons, https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/dwctext/72/ This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the American Society of Criminology - Division on Women and Crime at UNF Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Division on Women and Crime Documents and Correspondence by an authorized administrator of UNF Digital Commons. For more information, please contact Digital Projects. © 1994 All Rights Reserved PENN STATE (814) 863-4025 Women's Studies Program I 2-14 Sparks Building llLt:i College of the Liberal Arts The Pennsylvania State University ~ University Park, PA 16802 February 14, 1994 Karlene Faith Simon Fraser University School of Criminology Burnaby, B.C. VSA 1S6 Canada Zelma Henriques John Jay College of Criminal Justice 899 Tenth Avene New York, NY 10019 Dear Karlene and Zelma: Attached is a letter from Joan Petersilia concerning the Women and Prison resolution. As you can see, there are a number of things we could do in anticipation of next year's meeting if we wish to push this resolution forward. I would encourage you to do some planning now (for panels for next year's meeting, and for an article to appear in The Criminologist) . -
Feeble- Minded Based on Mental Age
I \ Classification of the Feeble- Minded Based on Mental Age. By A. C. Rogers, M.D., Faribault, Minn. Reprinted from the BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF MEDICINE Vol. XIII. No. 3. June, . l912. v. CLASSIFICATION OF THE FEEBLE-MINDED BASED ON MENTAL AGE. lly A. C. R oGERS, M.D., Faribault, Minn., Superintendent of the Minnesota School for Feeble-Minded and Colony for Epileptics. All who for the first time give attention to the literature and treatment of mental defectives are puzzled and confused by the lack of uniformity observed by writers and experienced workers in this field, both in the nomenclature adopted and classifications followed. It is the purpose of this paper to call attention, (rst) to the present tendency of the authorities to approximate uni formity as to the fundamental conceptions involved; (2nd) the long recognized need for some means of comparing feeble-minded with normal children at various stages of development, and (3rd) recent contributions to child study that seem to furnish the foundation required for developing a very satisfactory psycho logic classification of scientific value. It is unnecessary to present in full the various schemes for classification that have been proposed, 1 and the writer will only refer to such features of a few that have gained substantial recog nition and standing in the profession as may be necessary to make the situation clear. We will consider first the fundamental conceptions concerning which there is a very general agreement. The first bas reference to the general but constant -
From Moral Imbecility to Maladaptive Behavior: the Social Construction of Educable Mental Retardation
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 276 187 EC 190 953 AUTHOR Gelb, Steven A. TITLE From Moral Imbecility to Maladaptive Behavior: The Social Construction of Educable Mental Retardation. PUB DATE 18 Apr 86 NOTE 36p.; Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (67th, San Francisco, CA, April 18, 1986). PUB TYPE Viewpoints (120) -- Information Analyses (070) EDRS PRICE MF01/PCO2 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Adaptive Behavior (of Disabled); Classification; *Economically Disadvantaged; *Labeling (of Persons); *Mental Retardation; *Mild Mental Retardation; *Social History; Socioeconomic Status; Trend Analysis ABSTRACT The paper presents the thesis that mild mental subnormality developed as a "scientific," hence natural, explanation for the socially unacceptable behavior of economically marginal persons. The history of such labels as "moron," "imbecile," and "moral imbecile" is traced to the late 19th century emphasis on biology and genetics in human affairs. This focus led to the belief that criminal behavior was caused by mental deficiency and thus provided justification for massive institutionalization of people who did not meet societal expectations. The development of intelligence tests led to what was considered a scientific method of identifying the feebleminded. The need for manpower in World War II resulted in the discovery that many "feebleminded" persons could perform at higher levels than had previously been thought and some special educators credited special education with the new competence of the feebleminded. After the war new classification systems evolved based on social competence. Definitions of mental retardation by the American Association on Mental Deficiency included the construct of "adaptive behavior" which was difficult to measure reliably. Despite current confusion regarding definition, the mildly retarded of today are still drawn from economically marginal backgrounds. -
No. 112,521 in the COURT of APPEALS of the STATE OF
No. 112,521 IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF KANSAS DONALD J. WIMP, Appellee, v. AMERICAN HIGHWAY TECHNOLOGY and TRAVELERS PROPERTY CASUALTY OF AMERICA, Appellants. SYLLABUS BY THE COURT 1. K.S.A. 44-510c(a)(2) provides the overall rule that an employee is permanently and totally disabled if a work-related injury has left him or her "incapable of engaging in any type of substantial and gainful employment." Restated, when a work injury leaves an employee essentially and realistically unemployable, that employee is permanently and totally disabled. 2. As it stood before statutory amendments in 2011, K.S.A. 44-510c(a)(2) provided two presumptions. If the worker suffered parallel injuries (such as both feet or both hands), there was a rebuttable presumption of permanent total disability. If the worker suffered substantially total paralysis "or incurable imbecility or insanity" resulting solely from work-related injury, there was an irrebuttable presumption of permanent total disability. In that irrebuttable presumption, the term "incurable imbecility," initially added to our workers-compensation statutes in 1917, referred to a level of intellectual impairment categorized in more recent times as moderate to severe mental retardation, and not to merely below-average intellectual capacity. 3. On the facts of this case, in which the employee suffered parallel injuries to both arms, the Workers Compensation Board properly applied a rebuttable presumption of permanent total disability. 4. On the facts of this case, in which the employee had always performed manual labor, had limited ability to do other work, and had limited or no ability to do manual labor after his work injury, substantial evidence supported the Workers Compensation Board's conclusion that his employer did not rebut the statutory presumption of permanent total disability. -
Cesare Lombroso and the Origins of Criminology: Rethinking Criminological Tradition1
Cesare Lombroso and the origins of criminology: Rethinking criminological tradition1 Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909) is widely recognized as one of the first people to bring scientific methods to bear on the study of crime. A physician, psychiatrist, and prolific author, Lombroso is best known as the founder of criminal anthropology, the study of the body, mind, and habits of the “born” criminal. Lombroso's theory of the atavistic offender dominated criminological discussions in Europe, North and South America, and parts of Asia from the 1880s into the early twentieth century. But critics attacked his theory even during his lifetime, and by the time he died, criminologists outside Italy had moved on to other explanations of crime2. Today, criminology textbooks continue to acknowledge Lombroso as the “father” of the field, but they tend to be vague as to the nature of his contribution, and in U.S. courses on criminology, Lombroso and his work are sometimes ridiculed. The time is ripe to reassess Lombroso’s work and significance to the field. While I have no intention of defending Lombroso as a researcher, I have spent the last decade immersed in the originals of his books, which has led me to conclude that what we thought we knew about Lombroso differs in important respects from what he actually said. And because our view of his work has been unavoidably narrow and distorted, we have also reached some inaccurate conclusions about the nature of his contribution to criminology. In what follows, first I summarize the view of Lombroso that has appeared over time in American criminology textbooks. -
The History of Eugenics Alyssa Richards & Cassidy Welsh What Is Eugenics?
The History of Eugenics Alyssa Richards & Cassidy Welsh What is Eugenics? ● Derived from two Greek words meaning “well” and “born” ● Set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of the human population ● Attempt to only allow the “fit” to reproduce considered “positive” ● “Fit” was defined as: eugenics ○ High IQ ● “Negative” eugenics prohibiting ○ High socioeconomic class ○ Caucasian marriage and forced sterilization of those who are deemed “unfit” Positive eugenics existed for quite some time, even dating back to Plato who suggested selective mating Negative eugenics came sometime after dating back to the late 19th century https://www.nature.com/articles/gim2003376#f3 https://www.nature.com/articles/gim2003376#f3 To reduce the unfit: prevent marriage, racial mixing, sterilizaation, immigration laws, death If the unfit are born: abort, sterilize Sir Francis Galton (1822-1911) ● Galton invented the term of “Eugenics” in England in 1883 ● Half-cousin of Charles Darwin ● Came to the conclusion that upper class Brits were this way due to genetic make up ● Hereditary Genius ● Advocated selective breeding ● Felt qualified to breed a better race “Eugenics is the study of the agencies under social control that may improve or impair the racial qualities of future generations either physically or mentally” - Sir Francis Galton Galton and Davenport felt like they were qualified to breed a better race because they believed they were the best and the brightest. - Considered to be the father of the eugenics movement - After reading -
“Segregation Or Sterilization”: Eugenics in the 1912 Vermont State Legislative Session
“Segregation or Sterilization”: Eugenics in the 1912 Vermont State Legislative Session In his farewell address to the Vermont legislature in 1912, Governor John A. Mead endorsed for the first time a eugenical policy to address a longstanding fear of an increase in “degeneracy” in the state. Under the new theory of eugenics, socioeconomic status, physical and mental ability, and mental health officially became a question of heredity. By Mercedes de Guardiola n October 3, 1912, Vermont Governor John A. Mead (1910– 1912) addressed the Vermont Legislature in his farewell speech. Mead advocated that one subject in particular war- ranted additional attention: “Our Degenerates,” which, according to him, had “never received special attention by the legislature of our state.”1 The governor’s call for a eugenical solution to the problem of “Our Degenerates” marked a defining moment for the eugenics move- ment in Vermont. It was the first time a state official had publicly pro- posed eugenics as an answer to a growing number of perceived social . Mercedes de Guardiola is an independent researcher. She received her B.A. in History and Art History from Dartmouth College, where she wrote her thesis on the history of eugenics in Vermont. Vermont History Vol. 87, No. 1 (Winter/Spring 2019): 59-86. © 2019 by the Vermont Historical Society. ISSN: 0042-4161; on-line ISSN: 1544-3043 60 . crises in the state. Although it drew on the growing international move- ment, it also built upon local institutional forays into the question of the role of heredity in social issues. The promotion of eugenics led the state toward a path of punitive social welfare during a period when the state government struggled to address a growing number of problems brought on by social upheaval and industrialization. -
Avoiding Ableist Language
Avoiding Ableist Language Purpose: Disability metaphors are abound in our culture, and they exist almost entirely as pejoratives. As Rachel Cohen-Rottenberg wrote on DisabilityandRepresentation.com, “If a culture’s language is full of pejorative metaphors about a group of people, that culture is not going to see those people as fully entitled to the same inclusion as people in a more favored group.” This handout’s primary purpose is to serve as a reference for linguistic microaggressions and everyday, casual ableism. Barren Refers to people who are infertile and carries sexist connotations as well as ableist ones. Blind to ____ / turn a blind eye to ____ / blinded by ignorance/bigotry/etc. Refers to Blind people or people with visual impairments. Bound to a wheelchair (wheelchair bound) Refers to people with physical or mobility disabilities. Confined to a wheelchair Refers to people with physical or mobility disabilities. Crazy Refers to people with mental or psychiatric disabilities. Cretin Refers to people with intellectual disabilities. Cripple/Crippled (by ____) Refers to people with physical or mobility disabilities. Daft Refers to people with mental or psychiatric disabilities. Deaf-Mute Refers to Deaf people or people with hearing impairments. Deaf to ____ / turn a deaf ear to ____ / etc. Refers to Deaf people or people with hearing impairments. Derp (also herp-derp and variations) Refers to people with intellectual disabilities. Diffability Can refer to any person with a disability. Differently abled Can refer to any person with a disability. Dumb Refers to Deaf people or people with hearing impairments, people with speech impairments, or people with linguistic or communication disorders or disabilities. -
Six Blacks from Home: Childhood, Motherhood, And
PATRICK J. RYAN “Six Blacks from Home”: Childhood, Motherhood, and Eugenics in America In August 1919, a settlement house worker in Columbus, Ohio, filed a complaint in juvenile court against a seven-year-old girl whom I will call “Marie.” The complaint read, “Marie runs the streets continually. She is very irregular in her attendance at school, and is as dirty as a pig. She has been found in a lumber yard with a negro, and it was alleged by her asso- ciates that he raped her there. She goes into stores and begs.” According to the surviving records, Marie’s “truancies from home” alerted settle- ment workers to the case. As a young child she reportedly began staying out late at night and loitering in the company of men and boys, and was threatened with being put out of the house when she was found alone with the African American man. By 1928, after Marie became an unwed mother at the age of sixteen, and had spent nine years in and out of child welfare institutions, a summary report contained the interesting typographical error that Marie’s young life had strayed a distance of “six blacks from home.” As incidental as slipping “blocks” into “blacks” may have been in one sense, it captured a powerful truth. Marie violated key boundaries of sexual, gender, and racial purity that made a woman a candidate for respectable motherhood, and she paid dearly for these transgressions.1 When Marie and her mother entered the juvenile justice system for the first time in 1919, they denied that she had had sexual relations of any kind. -
“LET HER BE STERILIZED:” BUCK V. BELL, the AMERICAN EUGENICS MOVEMENT, and the ROOTS of the RIGHT to PRIVACY
“LET HER BE STERILIZED:” BUCK V. BELL, THE AMERICAN EUGENICS MOVEMENT, and THE ROOTS OF THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY JOHN G. BROWNING Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP 700 N. Pearl, 25th Floor, Dallas, Texas 75201 Phone: 214.871.8215/Fax: 214.871.8209 [email protected] State Bar of Texas BILL OF RIGHTS COURSE May 28, 2010 Austin CHAPTER 13 JOHN G. BROWNING Attorney\Thompson Coe\Dallas, Texas John Browning is a partner in the Dallas office of Thompson Coe where he handles civil litigation in state and federal courts in areas ranging from employment and intellectual property to commercial cases and defense of products liability, professional liability, media law, and general negligence matters. Mr. Browning received his BA with general and departmental honors from Rutgers University in 1986, where he was a National Merit Scholar and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He received his JD from the University of Texas School of Law in 1989. Some of his honors include being a 2009 recipient of the prestigious Burton Award for Achievement in Legal Writing; rated “AV,” the highest commendation issued by Martindale- Hubbell for legal ability, ethics, and professionalism; selected as a Texas “Super Lawyer” (2005- 2009); inducted as a Charter Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society limited to 3,500 fellows, representing less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers; and elected to the American Law Institute (one of seven lawyers in Texas elected in 2009). Mr. Browning is a noted legal writer whose work has appeared in many national and regional legal publications. -
Macbeth and Criminology
MACBETH AND CRIMINOLOGY JEFFREY R. WILSON This article—really a series of three essays—adDresses the Dynamic and mutually benefcial relationship between Shakespeare studies and criminology. In the scant scholarship considering this connec- tion, the play Macbeth has emergeD—with its murders and madnesses and crises of masculinity—as a source of fascination for criminolo- gists (as well as criminals themselves).1 BuilDing out from this his- torical curiosity, my take is both more textual and more theoretical. I use the example of Macbeth to illustrate, frst, how criminological theories can help us improve our understanDing of Shakespeare’s plays anD, seconD, how Shakespeare’s plays can help us improve our criminological theories. I contend that Shakespeare was doing an early version of what we now call “criminology”—understood as the formal stuDy of crime, criminals, criminal law, criminal justice, and social ills that could or should be criminalizeD—when he wrote trageDies such as Macbeth.2 UnderstanDing criminology as such, I have avoided saying that it is a “modern” and “scientifc” discipline, which might rufe some criminologists’ feathers, but I have done so because criminologists have at times acknowleDged conceptual precedents for their theories in Shakespeare’s plays and used his plays as evidence for their ideas, calling into question the notion that criminology is a purely scientifc enterprise associated with the modern age.3 COLLEGE LITERATURE: A JOURNAL OF CRITICAL LITERARY STUDIES 46.2 Spring 2019 Print ISSN 0093-3139 E-ISSN 1542-4286 © Johns Hopkins University Press and West Chester University 2019 454 COLLEGE LITERATURE | 46.2 Spring 2019 Shakespeare’s humanistic anD early-moDern criminology in Mac- beth, conducted through the resources of dramatic expression pro- vided by the genre of trageDy, taps into the question that really Drives all criminology: Who is to blame, the individual or the society? Like modern criminology, Macbeth’s multiple responses to this question are circumstantial, complex, and qualifed.