If you still need to complete Part 1, scroll down to see that blog post.
After you have read Phineas Gage and worked on the Phineas Gage Reading Guide Questions you should post your review of the book in the COMMENTS to THIS blog post. Please read all the instructions below before writing your Book Review. (use the "comment" link below this post)
Your comment should be a review of the book. A book review is a critical assessment of the book in which you share your opinions (claims) about the book and back up those opinions with examples from the book (evidence). Be sure to describe the story AND the style of the book.
Some questions you might want to think about as you write: What did you think of the book? What did you find most interesting? What are some new or surprising things you learned from the book? Why do you think Phineas was "lucky" or "unlucky?" Are there other texts (books, movies, etc.) that relate to the story of Phineas? Why or why would you not recommend it to a friend?
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Here are a couple of links about writing a good book review:
Here is a review of the book, The Hunger Games you can use as an example of a book review. Of course it's about a fictional novel, not a non-fiction book like Phineas Gage.
And just for fun....
18 comments:
I think Phineas Gage is a great book for those who want to enjoy a great read about a recount of a distinct occurrence to a human and how some psychology has come about from it. I believe this is a great story because as the narrator was telling Phineas Gage's story I was able to read something interesting and learn important information as well. Such as the number of neurons in the brain and spinal cord combined which is 100 billion, also that different parts of the brain have different functions - like the cerebellum which coordinates movements. The story begins with the introduction of Phineas; he’s 26 years old and is the foreman of a construction gang in Cavendish, Vermont. It is September 13, 1948, and on this day a step was forgotten in the usual routine for the construction gang. This step was for the sand to be poured, afterward, Phineas accidentally drops his iron tamper, striking the fuse causing the iron tamper to later come upward and through his skull- underneath his left cheek, behind his left eye, and through his frontal lobe. Phineas lives beyond what is expected;(11 years and 6 months) however, many are in shock over his survival from such an accident. As Phineas was living, some doctors had superstitions about what had happened to him. While others had ideas they believed Phineas’s accident was evidence for. Phineas later dies in July 1960 and his remains have and continue to lead to new discoveries that have been leading to improvements in psychology as we know it. I believe since Phineas survived years after having a spear through his brain and was able to live without getting a fatal infection, despite antibiotics not being created makes Phineas Gage lucky. I would definitely recommend this to a friend because I think it’s so unique and bizarre.
AF
Overall the book was quite interesting.The fact that an actual iron stick enters through an guys cheek and exits through his skull is quite awesome. I've read a story of phineans in the 7th grade; but in book it didn't go into much depth like this version of the book did.This story flows very well and it is organized.Every time the story mention medical terminology is had a short abbreviation as to what the word means.For example Pus= Dead white blood cells and Daguerreotype= a photograph on a metal plate.These strategies help readers understand the concept of whats going on in the story.Another thing I love about this book is the pictures.In chapter one pg 5 there is a photograph of a mold of Phineaus head injury; pg 8 also shows a more realistic image and actually shows the iron stick through phinueas head.Chapter two shows an actual images of the P.T Bernums American Museum; where Phineas supposedly is displaying himself and his iron stick.I would recommend this story to anyone who is studying the brain and how it operates.The only thing I can say i didn't like was in chapter they had unburied his body just so a couple of doctors can see proof that the accident did happen to a young man.I say it is wrong and selfish because Phineas is finally at rest and no one should take that away from him.So to finally answer the question " Was Phineas lucky or unlucky ?" I say Phineas is unlucky for multiply reasons. Phineas was struck with a iron pole,lost every job he had,had continuous seizures,was giving unsanitary procedures,wasn't the old Phineas anymore so he lost part of himself, he was looked at as a science project instead of a human being and finally he was dug up from his resting place for testing.
J.V
Phineas Gage was actually a good book to me ; basically it was really about the brain and trying to figure out how to understand the brain and honestly how Phineas survive that incident which was pretty intense.This book was kind of like a biography and a scientist method at the same time. Yeah I felt like certain things was over explain instead of getting right to the point.What I found the most interesting actually was how he survive the incident and how while reading it I actually visualize what was happening and how the pictures we're very detail and explain thoroughly.The reason I would recommend this book because its actually a detail book and you can learn a lot about the brain if you didn't know or if your in interested in the medical field period. Also it teaches you other things besides the brain, it teaches you things like the cell , plants etc anything basically dealing with science.
Phineas Gage A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman is A book about man named phineas Gage who had an unlucky accident one day while he was working. When Phineas was working in construction, he got distracted and a 13 inch rod went through his left cheek and out through the center of his forehead, yet Phineas lived. Although this was unlucky for phineas, it was very lucky for us. Phineas’ accident would change history and our knowledge on brain function forever. Phineas survived the accident was supposed to recover back to his old self, but he didn't. This book shows how different parts of the brain control different things in our behavior. I found this book interesting because it showed that although a person can look and be physically healthy , they can be mentally sick or changed. Like in the book when it states “... He is physically healed. Yet Dr.Harlow has private doubts about Phineas's mental state” Although phineas was back to normal physically he wasn't normal mentally. “His contractors who regarded him as the most efficient and capable foreman in their employ previous to his injury, considered the chang in his mind so marked that they could not give him his place again” I would recommend this to anybody who would like to learn about brain functions and different parts of the brain.
A.R
Cristyn Roman
August 23, 2018
AP Psychology
Review of the book
Phineas Gage was a short story full of information but also a story of Phineas’ life, all at once. The book included interesting medical discoveries that were tied into the chronological events of Phineas’ life.I think this book was interesting, even though the style is kind of distracting because some pictures kind of distract you from reading. I like the style of the book because it shows theme-related images that keep you entertained. I found Phineas’ loss of ability to socialize interesting because I would have never expected that. I dislike this book because I feel like there could have been more research done on Phineas while he was alive; someone could have kept track of more interesting events in Phineas’ life after the accident. I hope a new book with interesting facts from his sister’s point of view is made. I would recommend this book to a friend because it is the kind of book I would read in the bus and keep myself entertained. I would rate this book a 4/5 because it lacked a lot of the main character’s feelings about his own situation.
In all, John Fleischman’s recollections on Phineas Gage’s tale was both tragic and inquisitive. Tragic in the sense that Gage’s tale was very somber and unfortunate, but inquisitive in the sense that it leaves you questioning the many touched on topics of the book. The author gives the reader an opinionated-open question: Was Phineas Gage lucky or unlucky? which can be answered based on facts given through a narrative-like format. I found that the book highlighted key questions and gave a series of answers on brain function and psychological accident-made disorders. It gave light on the ignorance of how the brain opens with a triggering moment that can be seen physically but not mentally. Gage’s spiel, although hardly recorded through the unknowns of the brain let alone his own, still kept me engaged and vying for more information as to the long term and fatal effects of his calamities. I found it surprising how such medical discoveries such as the discovery of cells, bacteria, and the anatomical viewing of the brain were found in our time that could have stumped Phineas’ case during his time. The discoveries steered my reflection to answer the considered question: I conclude that Gage was lucky in the wrong time period. I also conclude that because not all evidence is found or if it’s even true, it’s hard to relate the story to movies or books besides the Harvard medical center and the book mentioning the plaque, since the different medias have a possibly similar understanding of the tale, only being told in different format. I would no doubt recommend this to a friend so they can ponder on the biased question and learn and maybe research brain function, psychology, and Phineas Gage himself as much as I have. It leaves you wondering on never-explored parts of the brain and how accidents are seen through pictured images. I very much enjoyed this highly explanatory book, although I wished it gave more detail on what Dr. Harlow saw different in Phineas through his point of view. I also liked how a memorial plaque was touched on at the end of the novel to emphasize how Gage’s tale is grounded and unforgetting as a whole.
Mya M.
In all, John Fleischman’s recollections on Phineas Gage’s tale was both tragic and inquisitive. Tragic in the sense that Gage’s tale was very somber and unfortunate, but inquisitive in the sense that it leaves you questioning the many touched on topics of the book. The author gives the reader an opinionated-open question: Was Phineas Gage lucky or unlucky? which can be answered based on facts given through a narrative-like format. I found that the book highlighted key questions and gave a series of answers on brain function and psychological accident-made disorders. It gave light on the ignorance of how the brain opens with a triggering moment that can be seen physically but not mentally. Gage’s spiel, although hardly recorded through the unknowns of the brain let alone his own, still kept me engaged and vying for more information as to the long term and fatal effects of his calamities. I found it surprising how such medical discoveries such as the discovery of cells, bacteria, and the anatomical viewing of the brain were found in our time that could have stumped Phineas’ case during his time. The discoveries steered my reflection to answer the considered question: I conclude that Gage was lucky in the wrong time period. I also conclude that because not all evidence is found or if it’s even true, it’s hard to relate the story to movies or books besides the Harvard medical center and the book mentioning the plaque, since the different medias have a possibly similar understanding of the tale, only being told in different format. I would no doubt recommend this to a friend so they can ponder on the biased question and learn and maybe research brain function, psychology, and Phineas Gage himself as much as I have. It leaves you wondering on never-explored parts of the brain and how accidents are seen through pictured images. I very much enjoyed this highly explanatory book, although I wished it gave more detail on what Dr. Harlow saw different in Phineas through his point of view. I also liked how a memorial plaque was touched on at the end of the novel to emphasize how Gage’s tale is grounded and unforgetting as a whole.
Mya M
Phineas Gage: a Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science is a book that follows the life of Phineas Gage after a terrible accident . Gage was hurt on the job while working on track construction on September 13. 1848. He ended up having his tampering iron go through his head . Even though he had a major open injury he was still alive and able to move around. The book follows Phineas’ life after this major injury that changed his life forever. The style of this book is informative and very detailed. I thought this book was wonderful . For me it was easy to follow along because of the diction . It didn’t take a long time to read . I have heard about his story before but thanks to this book I was able to get more detail on it . This book not only told us about his injury but also how he lived with it . I enjoyed reading about the differences in his mental state before and after the injury. I would describe Phineas as unlucky because he was injured and lucky because he survived longer than expected . This book reminds me of those people who wake up from comas and get foreign accent syndrome . I would recommend this book to people who are interested in unique and gruesome events .
Jessica T
The book Phineas Gage was a very interesting book. The incident of Phineas Gage was one of many rare cases to doctors to investigate how he managed to survive an open brain injury by a tampering iron that went through his frontal lobe. Gage was good to others and a hard worker but after the incident everything was the opposite. For example, “he was good with his hands and good with his men, possessing an iron will as well as an iron frame”, people thought of him being kind not the type that uses profanity. Doctors had looked into the situation and learned more about the brain how each part of it worked. I would recommend this book because it shows how in the 18th century the knowledge of science for doctors has advanced to a better understanding of the brain.
Melissa.A
Phineas Gage:A gruesome but true story about brain science is a good book to read for those beginning to study psychology.Phineas Gage was a man who suffered from a brain injury while building a railroad when an iron rod went through his skull damaging part of his frontal lobe.Phineas Gage was definitely a miracle after surviving his injury.He was the main attention for many scientists and doctors in the 1840’s because so many wondered how Gage was able to survive such a terrible injury.As the author says on page 9 , Phineas should have been dead long before any type of recovery,do to the loss of blood Phineas could've died of blood swelling.The author of the book,John Fleischman did a great job in letting the reader understand what was going on.John set up the moment by describing in many details what was going on, where Gage was at, who was with Gage,until the luck/unlucky impact happened.What I found most interesting is how after Phineases injury he was able to stand up and talk after losing a lot of blood and having an iron rod inside his skull.He took things calmly instead of freaking out.I would recommend this book to a friend because it's very easy to understand and read and would hopefully inspire them with a story like Gages.The book is also a very useful source for discovering more about the brain.The author took a section to explain how the brain works and how its divided, to help the reader better understand what actually went on in Gage's brain.
Jacqueline
Overall, Phineas Gage's story is really interesting. It is a great book if you want to know more about the brain or just read about Phineas' story. The book Itself has a really great flow that makes you not want to put the book down; you'll always want to know what happens next. What I found most interesting is that the iron went at the perfect angle to leave Phineas alive. It is amazing to me that if the rod would have been tilted at least a bit Phineas would be left unable to speak or even dead. I also found it really cool how Phineas' mom allowed his body to be dug out of his grave so his doctor could continue with his research plenty of years later. In my opinion, Phineas was very lucky because even though he did suffer a surreal injury he is left alive and basically famous. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend because of how interesting I found it and you will learn a lot about the brain. A must read.
I would rate Phineas Gage book a four because it was very interesting to read the effects of an iron-rod going through a person's head and survive. Although it was very interesting, I sometimes felt that it went off topic when it started going in depth about parts and functions of the brain a little too deep and made the book sometimes boring. What was very interesting was how Phineas life changed completely, he went from being in charge of a construction site to riding horses. Also, the book did a great job of explaining how scientists studied the brain over time. It explains how scientists back in the day would run their hands on the head and if there were bumps or knots, then it will show your special skills, like firmness, cautiousness, friendships, etc. I wouldn't recommend the book to just anybody, this is a book for someone who is very interested in brain science and anything connected because the book also talks about cells and microorganisms.
Overall Phineas Gage's story is really interesting. It is a great book if you want to know more about the brain or just read about Phineas' story. The book itself has a great flow that you don't want to put it down; you'll always want to know what happens next. what I found most interesting is that the iron rod went into his head at the perfect angle leaving Phineas alive. It's amazing to me that if the rod would have been positioned just at a slightly different angle it would have left Phineas unable to speak or even dead. I also found it really cool how Phineas' mother allowed his body to be dug out of his grave just so his doctor could continue with his research plenty of years later. In my opinion, Phineas was very lucky because the 13-pound iron rod left Phineas alive and cautious instead of instantly killing him. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend because it is really interesting and you learn a lot about how the brain works.
Vanessa G.
It’s safe to say that if someone had a rod that was three feet, seven inches and weighed thirteen and half pounds shoot up into their brain and exit their skull then they would be dead, but if you’re Phineas Gage then you most likely just dodged death. John Fleischman, author of “Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science”, not only goes into details about Phineas’ accident, but goes on to explain how this case ultimately helped change what was considered “brain science” at the time. This book didn’t just throw information at you, but even included captioned pictures that not only helped explain further about how the brain is actually structured and other details about the case overall. The author would even break the fourth wall in order to help the readers comprehend certain points of the case better and even give his own opinion like he did on page 75 as he ended the book with his overall opinion about whether Phineas was actually lucky or unlucky. Although that final paragraph might somewhat influence the reader's own opinion about whether Phineas was lucky or unlucky it really did help bring the book together for me because I also did consider Phineas a lucky person.
In the 1800’s, brain science was based off of different theories and not actual facts or experiments to back them up until the Gage case. Phineas was a twenty-six year old railroad construction foreman when his tamping iron shot up into his brain after an explosive went off. His tamping iron ultimately destroyed his brain’s left frontal lobe, but he somehow managed to survive the accident even though it was said that his personality changed completely until his death eleven years after the accident. Whether Phineas was a lucky man or not can be argued, but I believe that he was ultimately a lucky man. Yes, Phineas did have a drastic personality shift and was left permanently scarred but he still managed to adjust to his new way of life. Phineas’ accident was a blessing in disguise because it helped change how the medical world viewed the structure of the brain and its functions. Phineas died unaware of the fact that he made a difference and if it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t have challenged two of the most popular brain theories. Phineas continued to live a pretty normal life even though he didn’t know how to socialize or lead groups of men like before, but he managed to become a successful stagecoach driver and seemed to be content with his life for eleven years. Being content with his new way of life and making a greater difference than what he was aware of is what makes Phineas Gage a lucky man to me.
Ultimately, I did like the way this book explained the case and its overall structure making it very unique and different from non-fiction books I've read before. Fleischman’s way of telling Gage’s life for what we know of was very well explained and depicted with the images he used within the book. Breaking the fourth wall and talking to the reader in order to help us have a better understanding was also very helpful to me which makes it very easy for me to recommend this book to a friend. The length and clarity of this book makes it very easy to understand and follow until the very end.
S.G
"Phineas Gage" is an interesting book to read. I have never read something like the Phineas Gage book, but I would say that I enjoyed reading the story. The book is a true story that started in 1848 about a man- Phineas Gage- who worked as a railroad construction foreman. On September, 1848 he was working like any other day until a iron rod went through his brain. When I read the first chapter I was like "There is no way this man is still alive." I tried to understand the science behind this case because it was interesting to know that connecting billions of neurons you get a brain (according to page 30). I can not decide whether Phineas was unlucky/lucky because at first I thought that he was unlucky for the situation he went through, but as I read more I was like he is a lucky man to be alive for a while; he was able to live 11 years after his recovery. I would recommend everyone to read this brain science case because you don't only get great knowledge, but you get a good story to read and tell.
Phineas Gage, in my opinion was incredibly enlightening. The book focused on the brain, Phineas’ case studies, how the Brain works, why and how Phineas survived this freak accident. In the book I appreciated the extensive detailing of how it led up to the accident, the description of the 13 and a half pound iron stick, where the iron entered his cheek to where it exited. I found the fact that he survived not only the night but 11 years after the second most interesting thing about this book. The most interesting thing that I think was in this book was the aftermath of the horrific incident. After the accident it had been said that Gage was never himself again after the accident. When someone who has had a pole inpaled in their brain we assume that they won’t be the same in the physical aspect (talking, walking, eating, etc), but he made a miraculous recovery all except his personality and characteristics; those aspects changed dramatically and people who knew Gage before the accident said he was totally a different person. One thing I didn’t like about the book is that his body was dug up for scientific reasons. I believe if a body is at rest then the soul can rest and testing for scientific gain, although it would lead to being more informed and enlightened on the subject, very insensitive to a tragic event.
- Taylor Bryant
Phineas Gage, in my opinion was incredibly enlightening. The book focused on the brain, Phineas’ case studies, how the Brain works, why and how Phineas survived this freak accident. In the book I appreciated the extensive detailing of how it led up to the accident, the description of the 13 and a half pound iron stick, where the iron entered his cheek to where it exited. I found the fact that he survived not only the night but 11 years after the second most interesting thing about this book. The most interesting thing that I think was in this book was the aftermath of the horrific incident. After the accident it had been said that Gage was never himself again after the accident. When someone who has had a pole inpaled in their brain we assume that they won’t be the same in the physical aspect (talking, walking, eating, etc), but he made a miraculous recovery all except his personality and characteristics; those aspects changed dramatically and people who knew Gage before the accident said he was totally a different person. One thing I didn’t like about the book is that his body was dug up for scientific reasons. I believe if a body is at rest then the soul can rest and testing for scientific gain, although it would lead to being more informed and enlightened on the subject, very insensitive to a tragic event.
- Taylor Bryant
I think that this is a good read because it shows the progress that doctors have made as far as knowledge about the brain and how a person is affected by accidents like the one that Phineas was in. I think this is interesting because it not only gives us knowledge of the incident of Phineas. Also gives us a glimpse of what it was like in his life 11 yeard after his accident and what people thought of him as a person and how his personality changes and up to the day he dies. I also find it interesting how they said that he might have been in a freak show as an act but no one has actual proof that he was it was something that was heard and spread around. I also find it interesting how after the accident he was longer as social but he was really good with horses and kids I think that in many ways being social so he didn't necessarily lose all his ability to be social. I would recommend this to a friend because it is an easy book to read because it doesn't keep on the same subject for too many pages and gets to the point clearly I like that I was able to understand what was going on and I think some of my friends even family members would enjoy the book as much as I did .
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