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20 comments:
As H. Jackson Brown, JR. once said “luck marches with those who give their very best” and for a man like Phineas Gage, luck marched with him. Before his tragic accident as stated in the book Phineas was “the most efficient and capable foreman,” but right afterwards he became a pig-head, spoke vulgarly when women were around and he changed his mind very often. He could not longer be trusted; Phineas was no longer the man they once knew.
For many reasons I consider Phineas Gage both lucky and unlucky. The reasons as to why he was lucky is because he survived this tragic accident, it changed who he once was, and he managed to live as a new person for eleven years. In many ways I found his luck to be interesting; one for the fact that this man had a whole tamping iron pass through his left cheek onto his frontal cortex and survived! Also how he managed to be studied by a variety of doctors whom found this accident hard to believe, since he survived. No one could believe such occurrence. He was also lucky because he managed to find a different job after being fired from his past one and was hired as a stagecoach driver in Chile. This was also interesting since Phineas had become somebody new and his past friends and workers obviously didn’t tolerate his behavior. What I learned from his lucky side is that Phineas never gave up; he kept working after his condition. Yes, he was indeed a different man but his ambition to keep going and work hard was still there.
The reasons as to why he was unlucky were, one he lost his job at the railroad, and two he lost the respect from his friends and workers. Phineas could have looked well and improved, but to his companions he was strangely and new Phineas; the old one everybody knew was no longer there, mentally. He had become vulgar, rude and untrusted, and to be honest I don’t even think he recognized who he had become. I say this because when he was fired he wondered, gage was willing to work no matter what. Something I learned from this was that sometimes people wont accept you for the person you will become unexpectedly regardless if you’re still to do what’s important and not quit. But then again their refusal to accept you gives you the opportunity to move on and achieve more on your own terms.
I would definitely recommend this book to my friends. Apart from this book being simply easy to read and comprehend it contains a variety of information that grasps ones attention by a snap. The overall theme of the book, which I thought, was Phineas’ luck made it more captivating. I thought this book broke down Phineas’ Gage life quite well, short but indeed straight forward with the information. Another reason as to why I would recommend this book is, because it teaches an important point; to always work hard no matter what. In Phineas’ case he knew his condition, but regardless the minute he got up he was ready to proceed with his work and carry on with his day.
Over all Phineas Gage was both lucky and unlucky in his case. Regardless of his accident he still carried on a life for another eleven years. He died at a young age, but he never gave up he continued striving until his strength gave in, it was time to stop and let the resting begin.
"Phineas Gage- A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science" is a book about, you guessed it, Phineas Gage. He was an ordinary man with an ordinary job, and this book tells the story of the accident that changed his life forever. I like this book because it not only focuses on Gage, but it also touches on the fundamentals of psychology and how the brain works. I learned what parts of the brain control what bodily functions and emotions, which I found interesting. I also like how John Fleischman covers the whole story and writes in a a style that makes you feel like you are right there as it happens. He also covers other people's viewpoints who were there and lets you decide for yourself what to think about certain developments and situations. He repeatedly brought up the topic of whether Gage was "lucky" or "unlucky". I, personally, feel that Gage was unlucky because even though he escaped with his life, he lost "himself". He wasn't the same reliable man he was before. He lost all of his friends and family and lived out a large portion of the rest of his life alone. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading and learning about the brain and is curious about how it works.
Phineas Gage was a very lucky man I would say. He suffered from a horrifying accident which completely changed his life. His accident happened September 13, 1848, while he was building a railroad. This accident caused no tragic injuries, no loss of eye or pieces of his head that didn’t heal, it cause scars and his eye sight faded away but instead it cause a different person. His personality changed, made him unable to do certain task or be a reliable person, it made him use vulgar language in front of ladies or insult his coworkers. What intriguer my interest in this book was how it went into detail on how the brain works, the medical perception the thoughts of doctors back in that time. I would recommend this to a friend who is very interested in the way people are affected by an accident, in someone who is interested in the way the brain works, the difference from back time doctors and today’s doctor. The reasons why Phineas changed were because the frontal cortex of his brain was damage, which helps the person’s ability to predict, to decide and to interact socially. This was a very interesting book I really enjoyed it and makes me really interested in breaking down the human brain, figuring how that oragans works every part that makes us who we are.
J.M
While reading Phineas Gage by John Fleischman, I had many opinions toward what he was saying and how he put the descriptions in the book of the accident. I believe this book had good descriptions of what happened to Phineas physically and mentally and also about the accident. on page 5, it describes the accident in full details. "Phineas turns his head to glance over his right shoulder. The fat end of his tamping iron slips down into the hole and strikes the granite. A spark flies onto the exposed blasting powder. Blam! The drill hole acts as a gun barrel. Instead of a bullet, it flies Phineas's rod straight upward. The iron shrieks through the air and comes down with a loud clang about thirty feet away." This explains in detail what's put where, how it's used and what went wrong with it. The pictures shown throughout the book is also a good way to explain what the author is trying to say. The author explained how a man named Phineas gage survived a horrific accident. A man that survived a three foot, seven inch long and weighed thirteen and a half pounds and looked like an iron spear, that went in from his cheek and out to his forehead. it also went into detail about the way the iron rod entered his cheek and came out his forehead. The style of the book was in a storytelling format but also explained in a informational way on the things that was being told. From what happened to him to explaining what certain terms meant and how parts of the brain were infected by the accident. I think the book was very interesting to read. The way that the topics were described and explained were very helpful in understanding more about what was going on in his head. I found the pictures the most interesting because after all the informational stuff, the pictures helped me understand in further detail the meaning of the words. I would definitely recommend it to readers that are planning to take in psychology or that are naturally interested in stories like this one of Phineas Gage.
Phineas Gage was a book that kept me interested the whole time. I learned a lot of things and concepts I did not know, which were interesting to know. I didn’t believe that Phineas had survived the incident; however, as the injury was explained, it all started to make sense. Even though the iron rod went through Phineas head, it did in such a way that was both lucky and unlucky, as described in the book. Because it was an open brain injury, Phineas survived even though he was at risk of getting an infection. The rod only hit the frontal lobe of his brain, which is responsible for behavior and personality, and he was able to almost get fully recovered. Because of this interesting and fortunate accident, brain science could develop even more. Although Phineas died due to numerous seizures, his case is still famous today for obvious reasons.
Aside from learning about the accident and Phineas’ life after it, I learned simple everyday things in more depth, such as concussions and bacteria. I also learned more complex terms, such as corpus callosum, which is a switchboard between the hemispheres of the brain. I liked how it wasn’t just a story; the book paused to explain when certain things had changed and evolved in the field of brain science. It talked about the future and the past without making me lose track, and I had never read a book like that. The most interesting thing was learning how the brain is organized, like a city, and how every single thing has its function. Before reading the book, I thought of the brain like the Whole Brainers did. However, now, I know that I was completely wrong.
In my opinion, the book was really good. I would recommend it to anybody interested in learning about brain science. It was a relatively short book, and it did tell the story in an interesting way and taught me more about brain science. The book wasn’t in a certain person; it varied from first to second person often. Nevertheless, it had a good and intriguing story. A case like Phineas Gage’s must be good to still be famous in 2013. Reading it would teach us a few things that are good to know and might come in handy in the future. It was, overall, a great book, and I would read it again without a doubt.
-Karla L.
When I began reading the book, Phineas Gage: a Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science, I thought it was going to be a dull book, but it turned out to be very interesting. Not even the first chapter dragged, like most other books. It had a very good beginning, because it got straight to the point without ever losing track of the important events. Even if it did change subjects, the subjects, were always related to Phineas condition and why it affected him. His accident was a very tragic accident but it helped us understand the brain more.
The part I found most interesting was how Phineas managed to survive even though a pole rod went through his skull. Also how this event changed his whole personality, it made him into a whole different person. It was a huge accident, but I found interesting how with any slight brain change you change who you are. I mean how could a brain be so powerful to control all those emotions, movements, and feelings? The brain is a strong part of us and it surprised me how people discovered it, and how it functions!
I would definitely recommend this book to my friends. Even if it’s non-fiction the whole book is interesting. Once you start reading the book it will go by super fast, plus you’ll learn on the way. Like you’ll learn about “localizers” and how their hypothesis turned out to be the most accurate. Also because people should know about the brain and they shouldn’t be so ignorant to what happens inside their heads. The text of the book also is fascinating because the author did a good job of mixing Phineas story with actual facts. It made it easier to comprehend the book.
-Linda S.
Phineas Gage Book Review
The story of Phineas Gage shocked me quite a bit when I first started reading but as it progressed I was amazed. The theories of the past brought to my attention how fast we have progressed with technology and our understanding of the human brain. In Phineas’ time, the brain was seen either a “whole intelligence” or a divided function. Both theories were right in their own way which really shocked me. What interested me the most was that Phineas survived 20 years and managed to grow a custom to the change he went through. After his accident he was not accepted back at work because of his bipolar decisions but his attitude with children and animals grew. I learned a lot from this book that made me see that it took less time than I thought for us to grow in our knowledge of the job and abilities of the brain.
I think Phineas was extremely lucky to have survived the accident with his brain damaged and still function normally. Although he lost the ability to see right from wrong, Phineas lived a rather normal life. He was able to walk, talk, and understand what people were saying even after the damage. He traveled all over but only made one friend, his tamping iron. I would recommend this book to a friend because of the knowledge it brings and the extraordinary story of Phineas Gage would surprise everyone and I personally give this book a 9/10.
The book of Phineas Gage is about a man that worked at a track construction. He was in charged of setting up explosives with his assistant for new railroad tracks. Someone forgot to do a small step that would cause Phineas Gage to have a change in life forever. The explosion caused a tamping iron to go threw Phineas’ cheek and out threw his upper skull. Yet for some reason Phineas survived and no one knew how it was possible. Doctors still didn’t know a lot about the brain, Phineas changed. His mood was different and he was no longer sociable. Phineas Gage was lucky because he was able to survive for 20 more years. In the 1800’s the doctors didn’t know much about keeping clean, bacteria, and diseases. The era of the 1800’s was the time when most people died because of poor sanitation. He was lucky to survive for 20 years even if he did have problems as a consequence of the accident.
In my opinion the book was interesting and caught my attention because I never thought that anyone could survive a horrible accident even for a few days. I always thought that if you hurt your brain you would automatically die. The brain is separated into parts and each part causes different actions on people. Some parts cause us to walk, others to talk and so on. I would recommend the book because it teaches us how the brain works and what parts of the brain cause different actions.
Indyra R.
The fact that Phineas survived an incredible accident like the one he did is why the book intrigued me in the first place. It's amazing how he was able to survive an accident like that in the time he was living in because the medicine wasn't as nearly as advanced as it is today. I'd have to say that Phineas Gage is both lucky and unlucky. Gage is lucky because he survived the accident and was still able to talk and walk and see. He lost none of his skills. However, he is unlucky because his personality changed. The book is very interesting and goes into detail of where the tamp iron went through and the parts of the brain that it affected. I would recommend this book, but only to people who are interested in psychology and brain science.
I enjoyed reading this book. the nature of Phineas' injury is intriguing alone. In the first chapter they introduce you to Phineas & tell you about his profession & they even give you insight on his personality & behavior. they also introduce you to how he got injured. I think the first chapter was an attention grabber because they left you guessing about how he was even concious after such a crazy incident. They leave you guessing about how he was something so crazy didn't kill him.
The second chapter tells you about the brain, the parts of the brain, & some brain functions. They tell you about how people used to think a long time ago & how the way people thought evolved. they also begin to tell you about what part of Phineas' brain was damaged & they begin to tell you about his injury & the parts of his brain that were affected. the third chapter tells you about how he moved around and found work after his injury & how he came to die. the fourth chapter tells you about how doctors wanted to get autopsies and get to the bottom.of his injury & how Phineas wasn't the same after his accident. I liked the structure of the book because it went well, it flowed. & it all came together & made sense. the question whether he was unlucky or lucky is interesting. I think he was lucky for given a chance at life after such a crazy injury but he lost everything due to it. he wasn't himself. it changed him for the worse. no positive outcomes came from it. I think he was unlucky but I also think only Phineas can be the judge of that as to whether he felt like his life for better or worse because of it. I would recommend it to a friend because it was insightful it tells you about an intresting accident & it also tells you how the brain works. I liked reading it. it caught my attention & I think it was a really good, insightful book.
Phineas Gage was a book that kept me interested the whole time. I really thought it was going to be boring and all stuff about the brain that I already knew of. Gage is famous because of an accident. It was 1848 and Gage was working at putting down railroad tracks. He often had to blast some rock out of the way to put down the tracks and to do this they put down blasting powder, covered it with sand, put a fuse in it, and tamped it down with a tool called a tamping iron.
One day someone forgot to put the sand over the blasting powder. When Gage went to tamp it down, his rod hit the rock, making a spark that sparked the blasting powder and shot the tamping iron up through Gage's head. It entered his left cheek above the jaw and came out the top of the left side of his head. Because it was an open brain injury, Phineas survived even though he was at risk of getting an infection. The rod only hit the frontal lobe of his brain, which is responsible for behavior and personality, and he was able to almost get fully recovered. Because of this interesting and fortunate accident, brain science could develop even more. Phineas died due to seizures, his case is still famous today for obvious reasons. In my opinion, the book was really good. I would recommend it to anybody interested in learning about brain science. It helps with many parts of the head and if you’re interested in taking place in the science field or doctor this book is just for you.
-Anfernee I
Phineas Gage “A Gruesome But True Story About Brain Science” By- John Fleischman
I would like to start off by say I love this book. It caught my attention right after reading the first page. In my opinion, Phineas was a very lucky man indeed. To survive such an accident and still be able to live eleven years of life, have a job, and be with family is incredible. Even though he wasn’t completely himself due to an iron rod slicing through his left frontal cortex and leaving him “socially impaired/awkward”, he still lived to the age of thirty-six. Just to put it out there, damage to the left frontal cortex can affect social behavior and some doctors are looking into it because it could possibly have something to do with autism. Doctors Mr. and Mrs.Damasio give examples of how they have treated patients with left frontal cortex damage and how they are unable to make decisions or interact socially (pg 66). The most interesting part of the book was immediately after the incident, Phineas rode into town and acted as if nothing happened (pg 6). I was also interested when the author began to talk about bacteria, infection and disease (pgs 10-17). I personally love the science in medicine because its involved with the career I would like to peruse. Which is Epidemiology, deals with infectious disease and forensic medicine, it’s a passion of mine. The book as a whole was very interesting and descriptive. Gave plenty of future reference and feedback from other doctors and scientist. After Phineas passed away the author includes what happened after, like more research and the boulder in Vermont dedicated to Phineas (pg 74). People ask what makes us human? page 70 states that we are human because we are hard wired to be sociable with other human and if we loose that ability we end up like phineas, his closest companion was an iron rod. I would gladly recommend this book to anyone interested in science, medicine, and to those who wouldn’t believe a man survived an iron rod through his brain.
(Favorite quote- “I dressed him… but god healed him” Dr.Harlow)
After reading the story of Phineas Gage I was left in awe and curious to know more untold details like his life in Chile as a stagecoach driver. Did he get along well with others? How did he react around the horses? The littlest details left me wondering.
Many would consider Phineas Gage lucky because he survived such a tragic accident. I consider him unlucky. Yes, he may have survived but he was no longer himself. In fact he was the complete opposite. He had turned into a vulgar, unreliable man. A man that his friends and family would consider unrecognizable. I think the future generations of medicine and psychology were the lucky ones. If it wasn't for Phineas Gage we wouldn't have made the discovery early on about the different areas of the cortex, and what areas control specific functions and behaviors. Thanks to him we understood at least the rough outline of the brain.
Overall I thought the book was extremely fascinating. It was a fairly easy read and the terms and explanations of the brain were easy to grasp. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone even if they weren't interested in the brain. His story is so bizarre that you have to read it in order to believe it.
John Fleischman author of the book Phineas Gage-A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science. Does an amazing job describing and explaining to the readers whether they have a great science background or not. Fleischman sets the scene, guides his audience, and shows the audience how far behind they were in inventions and discovery about medical health. Even about bacteria! If someone today was to say what is bacteria? We would look at them like they are crazy because it’s something we are familiar with.Well not in that time you would be known as a genius.
In the beginning he doesn't exactly go into the whole story of what happened to Phineas. Instead he guides and describes the scene so that us the readers could understand and imagine it first hand. For example in the 2nd page he writes “Building a railroad in 1848 is muscle work. There are no bulldozers or power shovels to open…” Fleischman explains this because it goes right into why Phineas was in that position and what his job required. See in Phineas case that time period jobs such as mining work and railroad were the most dangerous. Phineas specialty or skill as it mention in the book was “blasting”. Which is also considered the most dangerous part because if you do it wrong, leave it dry or do any small mistake that can set it off. Personally I loved every second of the book. Just the way Fleischman present the story alone made me want to continue on. He doesn't bury you with tons of facts. Instead he incorporates the information so that it helps you understand better of what's necessary to know. He intrigues his reader by explaining the difference in the time periods of the discoveries. Such as when he writes in page 13 “In 1848, science is still twenty years away from figuring out that infections are the work of living-that is, “botic”- things.” That amazed me because we take little things such as these for granted. People in the 1800s i'm sure would have loved to know this information. Some movies that go great with the topic like Phineas Gage would be Regarding Henry and Memento which both are about change in characteristics and the mind. All in all I would a hundred percent recommend it to my friends.
Phineas Gage is famous because of an accident. It was 1848 and Gage was working at putting down railroad tracks. The crew often had to blast some rock out of the way to put down the tracks and to do this they put down blasting powder, covered it with sand, put a fuse in it, and tamped it down with a tool called a tamping iron. A tamping iron is an iron pole that's pointy on one end and rounded on the other end. The pointy end is for poking a hole in the blasting powder to place the fuse and the rounded end is for tamping down the sand-covered powder. Well. On this particular day, someone forgot to put the sand over the blasting powder. When Gage went to tamp it down, his rod hit the rock, making a spark that ignited the blasting powder and shot the tamping iron up through Gage's head. It entered his left cheek above the jaw and came out the top of the left side of his head. He didn't die. In fact, he was walking on his own and talking right after the accident happened. It was a medical marvel in this age before doctors know about bacteria or living cells. The other thing about Phineas Gage, though.. His personality completely changed after the accident. Before, he was a kind, friendly person. After the accident, he was moody, yelling at people for nothing and unable to make logical decisions.
Students still study Phineas Gage today because his accident indicated that different parts of the brain are responsible for different parts of human function and personality. Fleischman includes information about the development of medicine and the 19th century theories about brain function. He tells the story of Gage's accident and then his life after the accident and how doctors studied his case to learn more about the brain. Along with interesting text, Fleischman includes pictures... photos and diagrams of the brain to help illustrate the medical information he provides. All photos and illustrations include source notes. The book ends with an extensive glossary, a list of resources, and an index. Well I think this book was a fantastic way to show thow the brain works by showing how Phineas was in ana accident but didnt die instead he was back to his normal self. The most part that i found interesting is the part where Phineas didnt die and i was shocked because being in an accident like the one Phineas was, should of killed him. It was a miracle because who ever gets in an accident like Phineas would die but Gage was very lucky to survived a horrible accident. I would recommend this book to my friends because it shows and explains that Gage didn't die and that would shock them and then they would want to read to see if its true or not bout Gage surviving such a horrible accident. One surprising thing that I found in the book is how Gage survived even thou a metal stick went through his brain but was acting normal.
Phineas Gage was a man whose life change due to a small accident. Blasting large rocks into small pieces was a dangerous job that needed accuracy. If it was done wrong, anything can happen. This mistake caused a tamping iron to enter his left cheekbone, pass behind his left eye, through the front of his brain, and out of the middle of his forehead. The thing that surprised me besides surviving was that he stood up and acted like nothing happen. He was telling friends, workmates, and curious crowds of the accident. Surviving an accident in the 1800’s was incredible. Medicine was not what it is today, making this moment lucky. He was supposed to die but the hole in his brain made room due to his brain swelling. As good things go, the bad follows. Phineas developed fevers but the worst thing of the situation was his personality. Phineas was a well-liked man but now, the people who surrounded him no longer felt the same. He was unreliable, vulgar, and his decisions weren’t unpredictable. Phineas Gage was not Phineas Gage anymore but a new man.
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science is a book that I would definitely recommend to a friend. It’s a book that instantly catches attention. No boring stuff but interesting facts. It explains the story in detail and explaining Phineas situation. It explains how the iron damaged parts of the brain causing his personality change. How he never became the same men.
Ivette T.
Phineas Gage : A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science is a marvelous book. I enjoyed every bit of the book. What I really liked the most about the book was so much knowledge you gain from it. It explains the parts of the brains and what are their functions along with visuals. Also describes some of the struggles that went on during their time in the medical field like the doctors not knowing about bacteria. However, Phineas Gage's story was absolutely mind blowing. This man had a thirteen and a half pound iron shot through his brain. The pointy end of the rod entered under his left cheek bone, pass behind his left eye and through the front of his brain coming out the middle of his forehead. To a surprise he was still alive. He's walking and talking as if there wasn't a thirteen foot rod blown through his head. Dr. Harlow declares Phineas fully recovered from his wounds but Phineas didn't seem like himself. He was unreliable at times and nasty. He would change his mind very frequently and use vulgar language towards women. Therefore, the railroad contractors let him go. So technically Phineas wasn't fully "recovered". Through the course of time he ended up getting a job in Chile as a stagecoach driver. Then went back with his family working from farm to farm. Until he started suffering from seizures which ended up killing him before his twenty-seventh birthday. What really stood out to me or was interesting was how long Phineas got to live despite his brain injury. I strongly believe he was lucky. Even though he did go through a fatal accident it never seemed to hold him back from doing what he wanted to do for himself. He still had a job and traveled as he pleased. Phineas Gage not once was mentioned that he complained about his accident or what he went through to get back to his health. I think that's remarkable. I would most definitely recommend this to a friend. I give this book four out of five stars.
The story of Phineas Gage by John Fleischman was very Intriguing. It is the story of how an everyday construction worker from Cavendish,Vermont was just living a normal life and then a horrific accident occurred. Phineas Gage was distracted allowing something to go wrong, exposed blasting powder fires a 12-inch tamping iron directly through the air and it lands through his skull, resulting in an open-brain injury astoundingly he is still conscious and seems normal but the result of his injury is that his character is totally different. He is insulting,spouting vulgar language, and constantly changing his mind yet still perfectly alive. This happened in 1848 long before a lot of what we know now about medicine and science, Phineas lived until May 21st,1860 only by luck because doctors really didn't know how to treat his injury but research from him led to the discovery of many important things such bacteria, cells, seizures,infection, germs, and the medical use of microscopes.
Despite Phineas`s injury he had many adventures in his lifetime starting as a construction worker from being observed by doctors in Boston and all over the world, to being a part of Barnum`s Museum on Broadway In New York, to being a stage coach driver in Chile and a farm plower. Yet the question still remains, Is Phineas Gage lucky or unlucky? I believe he is more than lucky to have survived a metal rod to the skull and be in his condition is more of a miracle however, I think we are the lucky ones because if not for his survival there is so much in science and history that is crucial to today`s everyday procedures, surgery, and knowledge that probably wouldn't have been discovered until years later or ever. The book begins as a story then throughout Phineas`s life are bits of information and discoveries in medicine and how he contributed to that. I found it very interesting that throughout the book it is a comparison of how advanced and sanitary things have come to be versus long ago. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend
The book basically describes the events of Phineas from the accident up to recently. At the same time, it describes how doctors got the where they are now in terms of their knowledge about the brain. It describes the progress of their knowledge. I like the style of the book. It is in present-tense and it draws you into it without you noticing. It is very detailed to where I was able to picture myself back in time to when the accident happened as if I had witnessed the whole thing. What I found most interesting was how the doctors from Boston really didn’t believe Phineas’ case when Dr. Bigelow presented it. Maybe because I believe in miracles, and, well, they believe in science. I learned that damaging your brain doesn’t always end in death. I always thought that if anything happened to it, like accidently losing a piece of your brain, the person will automatically die. I consider Phineas’ accident unlucky. From pages 20-22, you can tell that Phineas changed for the worst. Personally, I wouldn’t want to live if it meant I was a whole new person. I would want to stay the person I am. Maybe Phineas didn’t realize he had a negative change in his personality. However, the people around him noticed right off the bat. I wouldn’t want to hurt my family and friends that way. I don’t know of any books or movies that relate to his story. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend it educates you without all the stress (unlike school).
-Daniela V.
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