Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-05-24
EPIDEMIC HYSTERIA
By H. Arlington Bruce
tn O MEDICAL psycholo gists there Is not
inc extranrdinar LEV in the STRANGE re

tn MEDICAL psychologists there Is MOTH
ing extraordinary in the strange zeal
of late displayed by numerous people in
dancing many hours without once stopping.
Their performance is merely an outbreak In
a special form of a social malady technically
known as epidemic hysteria.
Nor can the special form itself boast nov
city. For this is by no means the first time
that the world has witnessed a dancing
mania"
In the early days of spiritism-that is, in
the forties and fifties of last century-fren-
zied dancing was at times feature of
seances, so that as many as fifty men and
women might be seen whirling about. The
same thing happened still earlier at revival
meetings, first one person, then another being
seized with an Irresistible impulse to dance.
And there even were dancing manias long
before spiritism or revival meetings were
heard Of Occasional instances are reported
as far back as the thirteenth century, the
most noteworthy one being one that occurred
soon after Europe was swept by the black
plague AS recorded by a student of cpl
demic hysterla:
THE black death over the dancing mania
began About the year 1870 thousands of
dancers filled the streets of European cities.
So virulent was this epidemic that peasants
left their ploughs, mechanics their work
shops, and housewives their domestic duties
to join the wild revels,
Girls and boys quilted their parents, and
servants their masters, to look at the dancers,
and greedily imbibed the poison of mental
infection. In Italy the epidemic reached
such a height and became so widely spread
that few persons could claim to be entirely
exempt from it..
Fortunately, nothing like this has devel-
oped in connection with the latest dancing
mania, which is likely to be short-l1Ved II
only because it has as motive the establish
nnrAc
higher the record set, the fewer persons will
attempt to break it, until at last all give
over trying.
Yet psychologically the mania of today Is
as significant as any earlier mania OF It's sort
1t goes to prove that, despite the boosted
advances in education, large numbers OF
people remain unduly suggestible, uncritical-
ly responsive to ideas, no matter how extraV-
agant and absurd. Also it goes to prove that
large numbers are in state of nervous 1rri-
liability so extreme that they welcome even
exhaustion as a means OF gaining rellet from
tension
Partly. no doubt, this may be attributed
to the stresses of the war period and of the
present uncertain reconstruction period. But
in large measure the blame must again be
put on educational shortcomings, and espe-
cialIy on the failure of education to foster
poise, strength of character, and whole
some life attitude.
Always those most immune from hysteria
and other nervous disorders are those who
have most self-control and best know how to
meet the varied demands Of life Always the
gaining of self-control and of adapta bility is
the product chiefly of training, of education.
Hence when nervous disorders are rampant,
most of all when outbreaks of epidemic hys
terra occur, warning is given that the educa-
tional system is somehow at fault.
In one way or another such warnings have
been given century after century. Will man
~iV,1 t. fhnr