This seminar explores how both gender and historical context shaped what came to be defined as mental illness among women in US history.  We will explore a series of questions, including:  why have women been the witches and hysterics of the past?  Why have more women than men been counted and institutionalized as mentally ill? What is the relationship between historically constructed ideas of femininity and madness?  How has the emotional and psychological suffering of women differed from that of men, and how have both changed over time?  Finally, how did notions of gender historically influence the experience and treatment of women’s mental disorders?