I. Witholding Treatment
1: The Birth of a Controversy
2: Contexts to the Conflict
3: Identifying the Unfit: Biology and Culture in Eugenic
Constructions of Hereditary Disease
4: Eliminating the Unfit: Euthanasia and Eugenics
5: Who Decides?: The Ironies of Professional Power
II. Publicity
6: Mass Media Medicine
7: Eugenics on Film
8: The Black Stork
9: Medicine, Media, and Memory
"A veritable page-turner whose unifying narrative thread is nothing
less than infanticide....The scope of the book is as impressive as
its argument."--Journal of the History of Medicine
"In this excellent book, Martin Pernick has resurrected the
long-forgotten story of the Bollinger baby, Haiselden, and his
movie, which was entitled The Black Stork. In so doing, Pernick
gives us an essential historical perspective on two pressing
issues: the possible abuses of new forms of genetic technology and
physician-assisted suicide....[The] book breaks important new
ground....By showing how eugenics was portrayed in the media and on
film,
Pernick gives a much more nuanced treatment of the topic than
previous authors....There is little to criticize...Clearly written
and copiously referenced."--Barron H. Lerner (Columbia College of
Physicians and
Surgeons) in The New England Journal of Medicine
"A veritable page-turner whose unifying narrative thread is nothing
less than infanticide....The scope of the book is as impressive as
its argument."--Journal of the History of Medicine
"Fascinating...A thoughtful and comprehensive review of the history
of eugenics...It will be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in the
history of medicine, ethics, social policy, and film."
"Pernick's rich analysis of The Black Stork breaks new ground, for
it successfully addresses contemporary concerns while also shedding
significant new light on the early eugenics movement, the early
film industry, and the surprising connections between the
two."--Bulletin of the History of Medicine
"For those interested in the history of eugenics and euthanasia in
the United States, Pernick's book is a must...In terms of its
attention to the influence of medical ideas on mass culture and of
film on medicine, this book is a landmark."--Annals of Internal
Medicine
"Pernick has done a remarkable job of accumulating and
analyzing...material...Pernick describes the linkage of eugenics,
euthanasia, and films in a lucid and engaging way....The Black
Stork is an excellent book. Scholars, students, and other people
interested in disability studies will find it engaging,
eye-opening, and relevant."--American Journal on Mental
Retardation
"A most frightening tale of medicine run amok. Martin Pernick's
narrative of Dr. Harry J. Haiselden's fin-de-siecle crusade for the
euthanasia of 'defective' children is a tale of the tangled pathway
of science in its pursuit of social ends. Since these questions
have arisen in more sophisticated form with the knowledge achieved
daily through the human genome project, Pernick's narrative is a
strong warning about the slippery slope of determining what
life is worth living."--Sander L. Gilman, University of Chicago
"This is an excellent book whose appeal should extend to general
readers interested in film and the public role of science, as well
as to historians of medicine and film and to social and cultural
historians."--Journal of Social History
"...Pernick's study is highly original and should interest social
and cultural historians as well as film historians."--American
Historical Review
"Pernick skillfully reviews the literature and propaganda of the
early eugenics movement but more importantly examines the societal
response to eugenics....the absolute best is saved for last with an
eloquent discussion of medical decision making and use of so-called
value-neutral language."--National Society of Genetic Counselors
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