Book description
During the 1940s and 1950s, tens of thousands of Americans underwent some form of psychosurgery; that is, their brains were operated upon for the putative purpose of treating mental illness. From today's perspective, such medical practices appear foolhardy at best, perhaps even barbaric; most commentators thus have seen in the…
Why read it?
1 author picked Last Resort as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
I am a sucker for books that bridge the uncanny valley between the past and present to answer the question, how in the hell did this happen? Lobotomy is the most infamous of all psychiatry “treatments.” From our perch in the present, it is hard to fathom the popularity of such a barbaric practice.
In this book, Jack Pressman tells the chilling story of lobotomy but does so in a way that stresses how normal, and even banal, it was for psychiatrists of the day. Faced with overcrowded mental hospitals, psychiatrists turned to lobotomy out of desperation, willfully swallowing its…
From Owen's list on The best books on psychiatry’s troubled past.
If you love Last Resort...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
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