Description
Book SynopsisTo the British soldiers of the Great War who heard about it, 'shell shock' was uncanny, amusing and sad.
Trade Review'One of the crucial and most moving episodes of twentieth century British history has now found its worthy historian. Peter Leese writes the story of shell shock with expertise and flair, with critical detachment and compassion. Avoiding judgementalism, he brings out the full enormity of this tragic story.' - Professor Roy Porter, Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine
'The book fills a glaring gap in our historical knowledge.' - Mark Micale, Associate Professor of History, University of Illinois
'Shell shock was born as a condition in 1915 but has grown to become a metaphor for the horrors of total war. Leese tells the story of that evolution with learning, sympathy and a shrewd sense of the way medical history can illuminate our understanding of the violent twentieth-century as a whole.' - Professor Jay Winter, Department of History, Yale University
'...a powerful and authoritative study of the war's mental legacy.' - Ben Shephard, Times Literary Supplement
'Those willing to pay attention, however, will be rewarded by this first full-length treatment of Britain's 'shell-shock' experience.' - Maureen T. Moore, Journal of Military History
'...an interesting contribution both to medical history and to the continuing debate about...WWI. - T.L. Crosby, Choice
Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements Introduction PART I: DISCOVERIES Shocking Modernity: Hysteria, Technology and Warfare Casualties: On the Western Front PART II: WARTIME Enlistment: Army Policy, Politics and the Press Treatment: On the Home Front Patients: The Other Ranks Patients: The Officer Ranks PART II: LEGACIES Demobilization: On Returning Home Veterans: War Neurotic Ex-Servicemen Recall: The Great War in the Twentieth Century Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index
