The Body Silent - Softcover

Murphy, Robert F.

3.85

295 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0393307026 ISBN 13: 9780393307023

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Co., 1991

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Winner of the Columbia University Lionel Trilling Award. Robert Murphy was in the prime of his career as an anthropologist when he felt the first symptom of a malady that would ultimately take him on an odyssey stranger than any field trip to the Amazon: a tumor of the spinal cord that progressed slowly and irreversibly into quadriplegia. In this gripping account, Murphy explores society's fears, myths, and misunderstandings about disability, and the damage they inflict. He reports how paralysis--like all disabilities--assaults people's identity, social standing, and ties with others, while at the same time making the love of life burn even more fiercely.

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Synopsis:

Drawing on his own experiences with a deepening quadruplegia, the author examines the threat posed to society by the handicapped while discussing the victim's own loss of self-esteem.

About the Author:

Robert F. Murphy (1924-1990) was professor of anthropology at Columbia University and the author of many articles and books.

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