This thesis reflects on three aspects of János Szász's Opium. Diary of a Madwoman: early treatments for mental illnesses, hysteria, and the depiction of the female body on screen. More precisely it points out how the hysteria was represented in the movie and how its treatments were used on screen. My work also explores the two main characters, Doctor Brenner and the madwoman, Gizella Klein's motifs, passion, that are perfectly parallel to each other.