Emotions and Surgery in Britain, 1793-1912 (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781108834841)

In this innovative analytical account of the place of emotion and embodiment in nineteenth-century British surgery, Michael Brown examines the changing emotional dynamics of surgical culture for both surgeons and patients from the pre-anaesthetic era through the introduction of anaesthesia and antisepsis techniques. Drawing on diverse archival and published sources, Brown explores how an emotional regime of Romantic sensibility, in which emotions played a central role in the practice and experience of surgery, was superseded by one of scientific modernity, in which the emotions of both patient and practitioner were increasingly marginalised. Demonstrating that the cultures of contemporary surgery and the emotional identities of its practitioners have their origins in the cultural and conceptual upheavals of the later nineteenth century, this book challenges us to question our perception of the pre-anaesthetic period as an era of bloody brutality and casual cruelty. This title is also available as open access.

Author: Michael Brown
ISBN-10: 1108834841
ISBN-13: 9781108834841
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 10/20/2022
Pages: 300
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.33lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.75d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 05/01/2024