Product Description

This brilliant work of social history reveals the hidden impact of syphilis on many of history's famous figures--from Wilde to Hitler to Abraham Lincoln--and its influence on the culture they created. Was Beethoven experiencing syphilitic euphoria when he composed "Ode to Joy"? Did van Gogh paint "Crows Over the Wheatfield" in a fit of diseased madness right before he shot himself? Was syphilis a stowaway on Columbus's return voyage to Europe? The answers to these provocative questions are likely "yes," claims Deborah Hayden in this riveting investigation of the effects of the "Pox" on the lives and works of world figures from the fifteenth through the twentieth centuries. Writing with remarkable insight and narrative flair, Hayden argues that biographers and historians have vastly underestimated the influence of what Thomas Mann called "this exhilarating yet wasting disease. " Shrouded in secrecy, syphilis was accompanied by wild euphoria and suicidal depression, megalomania and paranoia, profoundly affecting sufferers' worldview, their sexual behavior and personality, and, of course, their art. Deeply informed and courageously argued, Pox has already been heralded as a major contribution to our understanding of genius, madness, and creativity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1438777 in Books
• Published on: 2003-02-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

Elizabeth M. Whelan, The Washington Times
"Riveting. . . Pox will be of interest to anyone who loves a good mystery story."

Peter Byrne, S.F. Weekly
"Breaks ground in the field...Hayden presents 15 historical celebrities, including Beethoven, Nietzsche, Lincoln, and her pice de r sistance, Hitler."

Natalie Angier, The New York Times
"POX . . . presents the fascinating thesis that many eminent figures in history very likely suffered from syphilis."

Customer Reviews

A Pox on You If You Don't Read this Book!
Pox on you if you don't read this book!, March 2, 2003
Reviewer: Areader from Las Vegas, NV USA
This is the best book I have read this year, and probably the best book Ihave read in five years. Not only is the information critical forunderstanding a number of historical personages, but Hayden's writing isstimulating. Her words work their way through your system the samecompelling way syphilis worked its way through such a huge portion of thepopulation until the development of penicillin. That is, her message can'tbe ignored. The need for society to put syphilis in the closet is surelyas strong a statement as the impact of the infection itself on genius,madness, and creativity. Given its unusual subject matter, this is adetective book that is hard to put down once you start it.

Excellent Value
I half read this book- then my wife "accidently" threw the book away! No matter having bought the item a second time, I am more than pleased to advise this is a good read! The Pox certainly gets around so one wonders what damage, who is infected these days and whether or not events are being dictated by it's infectious course! Well worth the cover price!