Hysteria (film)

Film poster for Hysteria

Hysteria is a 2011 British period romantic comedy film directed by Tanya Wexler. It stars Hugh Dancy and Maggie Gyllenhaal, with Felicity Jones, Jonathan Pryce, and Rupert Everett appearing in key supporting roles. The film, set in the Victorian era, shows how the medical management of hysteria led to the invention of the vibrator.

Plot

Set at the end of 1880, the film depicts the invention of the vibrator. Dr. Mortimer Granville is a young physician who struggles in his occupation due to constant arguments over modern medicine. He secures a job assisting Dr. Dalrymple, whose practice specializes in the treatment of "hysteria, " a popular diagnosis for women of that era. Medical practitioners like Dr. Dalrymple attempted to manage hysteria by massaging the genital area, discreetly covered by a curtain, to elicit "paroxysmal convulsions, " without realizing that they were inducing orgasms. Granville encounters Dr. Dalrymple's daughters, Emily and her older sister Charlotte – a premodern feminist who operates a settlement house in a poor area of East London.

Granville seems skilled at massaging and attracting a sizable following, while at the same time, Dr. Dalrymple suggests he might eventually take over the business and marry Emily. One night after work, Charlotte comes in with her friend Fannie, who has broken her ankle. After treating her, Dalrymple forbids Granville from offering any future assistance to Charlotte, hoping to dissuade her from her work in the slums. Meanwhile, the increased clientele at the practice is challenging for Granville, and his hand muscles are unable to keep up with the demand; an attack of cramp leads to his dismissal. Fortunately, his friend, Lord Edmund St. John-Smythe, has developed an electrical feather duster, and its vibrations inspire Dr. Granville to modify the device for use as an electric massager. After successfully using it on Dalrymple's maid Molly, he convinces Dr. Dalrymple to try the device on his patients, resulting in massive success. Mortimer and Emily then become engaged, while Charlotte struggles to support the welfare house.

At the engagement party, Charlotte is arrested while protecting Fannie from a police officer. Emily and Dr. Dalrymple urge Granville to testify at her trial that she is hysterical to prevent her from being sent to prison. During the trial, the prosecutor recommends that Charlotte be sent to a sanatorium and forced to undergo a hysterectomy. As Mortimer speaks, he explains that the symptoms of hysteria are too common to be regarded as a mental illness and that he believes Charlotte is the most generous and caring person he knows. The judge agrees with Mortimer's argument, and Charlotte is sentenced to just thirty days in prison for her assault on the policeman.

Emily decides to end her engagement with Granville after realising her only motive was to please her father. The vibrator now enters the stage as a medical device for to treat the condition, reducing treatment time while significantly increasing customer satisfaction. The royalties from its sale result in independent wealth for Granville, who has fallen in love with Charlotte. Pledging to use some of his wealth to establish a clinic at her settlement house, he proposes marriage to Charlotte and she accepts.