The story of pain From prayer to painkillers

Bourke (history, Birkbeck, Univ. of London; An Intimate History of Killing: Face-to-Face Killing in Twentieth Century Warfare) analyzes the history of pain from the 1760s to the 2000s. Focusing on experiences in Europe and North America, the author notes how society, environment, physiology, and language all influence the sensation and interpretation of pain. As Bourke describes changes in the language used to communicate the feeling, she draws on an impressive range of source material including sermons, journals, hagiographies, philosophical treatises, memoirs, and advertisements. Like Michel Foucault, the author considers the power dynamics at work between doctors and patients, and between suffering people and the rest of society. However, Bourke emphasizes the agency of sufferers in that they creatively frame their own narratives about pain, thus shaping their own experiences. This book is rich with examples illustrating medical, religious, racial, and gendered discourses about its subject and the impact these have had, and continue to have, in the provision of medical care to the public.- -VERDICT A fascinating read for upper--division university students and scholars of medical history as it relates to philosophy, politics, and linguistics.-Talea Anderson, -College Place, WA (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A scholarly treatise on how pain and those who suffer from it have been regarded over the past three centuries in the Western world. Bourke (History/Birkbeck Coll., Univ. of London; What It Means to Be Human: Historical Reflections from the 1800s to the Present, 2011, etc.) claims that pain should not be considered an objective entity but rather as a unique part of a person's being. As such, there is always a context, history or cultural milieu that colors the individual's unique experience. That setting is her focus as she plumbs the literature and includes copious quotes from philosophers and practitioners, preachers and patients. It is infuriating to read that the Christian position was that pain was punishment for original sin (plus others you accrued) and that you had better grin and bear it if you hoped for a better hereafter. Or how about the phrenologists' discovery of a "destruction" bump, which gave them the power to amputate mercilessly rather than show any hesitancy born of compassion in the pre-anesthetic days? Attitudes changed with the advent of ether and chloroform in the 1840s, but what about class, education or gender? Women were considered more sensitive and emotional, while the lower classes and blacks were considered inferior and less sensitive to pain (a great comfort to slave owners). It was not until the 1960s that medical practice came around to recognizing that newborns and infants could feel pain. To be sure, there were always voices raised against conventional beliefs, and there have been critical advances in the neuroscience of pain. Bourke charts this progress, but the truth remains: Medical education on pain is severely deficient, and race and gender issues continue to prevail. Patients themselves can be their own worst enemies, fearing addiction or condemnation as a complainer. Bourke has done a fine job of detailing the story of pain and the folly it reveals. Sadly, the folly has not gone away. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.