Ailing, Aging, Addicted : Studies of Compromised Leadership

Bert E Park

ISBN 10: 0813156289 / ISBN 13: 9780813156286

Published by University Press Of Kentucky Jul 2014, 2014

About this Item

Neuware - What role did drug abuse play in John F. Kennedy's White House, and how was it kept from the public How did general anesthetics and aging affect the presidency of Ronald Reagan Why did Winston Churchill become more egocentric, Woodrow Wilson more self- righteous, and Josef Stalin more paranoid as they aged - and how did those qualities alter the course of history Was Napoleon poisoned with arsenic or did underlying disease account for his decline at the peak of his power Does syphilis really explain Henry VIII's midlife transformation Was there more than messianism brewing in the brains of some zealots of the past, among them Adolf Hitler, Joan of Arc, and John Brown Most important of all, when does one man's illness cause millions to suffer, and when is it merely a footnote to history To answer such questions requires the clinical intuition of a practicing physician and the scholarly perspective of a trained historian. Bert Park, who qualifies on both counts, offers here fascinating second opinions, basing his retrospective diagnoses on a wide range of sources from medicine and history. Few books so graphically portray the impact on history of physiologically compromised leadership, misdiagnosis, and inappropriate medical treatment. Park not only untangles medical mysteries from the past but also offers timely suggestions for dealing with such problems in the future. As a welcome sequel to his first work, The Impact of Illness on World Leaders, this book offers scholars, physicians, and general readers an entertaining, albeit sobering, analysis.

Seller Inventory # 9780813156286

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Ailing, Aging, Addicted : Studies of Compromised Leadership
• Publisher: University Press Of Kentucky Jul 2014
• Publication Date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0813156289
• ISBN 13: 9780813156286
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 229W x 152H x 17D millimeters 229 millimeters width by 152 millimeters height by 17 millimeters depth
• Weight: 426 grams

About this title

Synopsis

What role did drug abuse play in John F. Kennedy's White House, and how was it kept from the public? How did general anesthetics and aging affect the presidency of Ronald Reagan? Why did Winston Churchill become more egocentric, Woodrow Wilson more self- righteous, and Josef Stalin more paranoid as they aged―and how did those qualities alter the course of history?

Was Napoleon poisoned with arsenic or did underlying disease account for his decline at the peak of his power? Does syphilis really explain Henry VIII's midlife transformation? Was there more than messianism brewing in the brains of some zealots of the past, among them Adolf Hitler, Joan of Arc, and John Brown? Most important of all, when does one man's illness cause millions to suffer, and when is it merely a footnote to history?

To answer such questions requires the clinical intuition of a practicing physician and the scholarly perspective of a trained historian. Bert Park, who qualifies on both counts, offers here fascinating second opinions, basing his retrospective diagnoses on a wide range of sources from medicine and history.

Few books so graphically portray the impact on history of physiologically compromised leadership, misdiagnosis, and inappropriate medical treatment. Park not only untangles medical mysteries from the past but also offers timely suggestions for dealing with such problems in the future. As a welcome sequel to his first work, The Impact of Illness on World Leaders, this book offers scholars, physicians, and general readers an entertaining, albeit sobering, analysis.

About the Author

Bert E. Park, M.D., is a practicing neurological surgeon, an adjunct professor of history, and a member of the Editorial Advisory Committee of the Papers of Woodrow Wilson.