The Woman They Could Not Silence
by Kate Moore
nonFiction
The Woman They Could Not Silence
Two words: extraordinary and powerful. The book details how the diagnosis of insanity was weaponized against women who would not conform to societal norms and succumb to a man’s will. Moore takes us on one woman’s (Elizabeth Packard) fight to be heard and gain her freedom. Ultimately, it’s a story about women’s voices and the lengths the patriarchy will go to in order to maintain control. It’s a not so long ago part of American history when women could be silenced and imprisoned simply for independent thinking, and some of the methods of oppression used then are still prevalent today (think gaslighting). Elizabeth, a real life heroine, became a resilient reformer who found her strength through unimaginable injustice and became a trailblazer for women’s rights and mental health reform.
