The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat
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- Create Date：2021-03-27 10:14:12
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Oliver Sacks
- ISBN：9953876746
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Summary
If a man has lost a leg or an eye， he knows he has lost a leg or an eye; but if he has lost a self—himself—he cannot know it， because he is no longer there to know it。 Dr。 Oliver Sacks recounts the stories of patients struggling to adapt to often bizarre worlds of neurological disorder。 Here are people who can no longer recognize everyday objects or those they love; who are stricken with violent tics or shout involuntary obscenities; who have been dismissed as autistic or retarded， yet are gifted with uncanny artistic or mathematical talents。 If inconceivably strange， these brilliant tales illuminate what it means to be human。
Reviews
Kaitlin
，
I honestly had no idea the depths of the human mind。 What God has created and sustains， even when broken by bad health， is entirely astounding。 I really liked this book and really loved certain parts of it; the way Dr。 Sacks revealed the humanity in the losses and excesses of his patients stimulated my own brain， and moved my heart。 I gave it 4/5 instead of 5/5 because the science was way above my pay grade， so I absolutely skimmed some pages。 But whether you have a PhD in science or not， this b I honestly had no idea the depths of the human mind。 What God has created and sustains， even when broken by bad health， is entirely astounding。 I really liked this book and really loved certain parts of it; the way Dr。 Sacks revealed the humanity in the losses and excesses of his patients stimulated my own brain， and moved my heart。 I gave it 4/5 instead of 5/5 because the science was way above my pay grade， so I absolutely skimmed some pages。 But whether you have a PhD in science or not， this book has enough fascinating details to interest any avid reader。 。。。more
JT Houk
，
While some of the language and interpretations of psychology and neuroscience have naturally evolved since 1985， the insights offered by Oliver Sacks of the human experience for people with different neurological physiologies feels quite timeless
Nick Riba-Ramirez
，
absolutely amazing the way sacks describes in vivid language not only the conditions of his patients but how they experience the world。 this book is truly an eye opener
Nil
，
Nörolojiye ilginiz varsa gerçek hikayelerden oluşan bu kitabı çok seveceksiniz。 Ama eğer benim gibi pek de ilgili duymuyorsanız yalnızca bazı nörolojik hastalıkları öğrenip farkındalık kazanmanızı sağlayacak bir kitap。
Stefania
，
"Egli [l'afasico] non riesce ad afferrare le tue parole， e quindi non può esserne ingannato; ma l'espressione che accompagna le parole， quell'espressività totale， spontanea， involontaria che non può mai essere simulata o contraffatta， come possono esserlo， fin troppo facilmente， le parole。。。 tutto questo egli lo afferra con precisione infallibile。Ecco dunque dov'era il paradosso del discorso del Presidente。 Noi normali， indubbiamente aiutati dal nostro desiderio di esser menati per il naso， fumm "Egli [l'afasico] non riesce ad afferrare le tue parole， e quindi non può esserne ingannato; ma l'espressione che accompagna le parole， quell'espressività totale， spontanea， involontaria che non può mai essere simulata o contraffatta， come possono esserlo， fin troppo facilmente， le parole。。。 tutto questo egli lo afferra con precisione infallibile。Ecco dunque dov'era il paradosso del discorso del Presidente。 Noi normali， indubbiamente aiutati dal nostro desiderio di esser menati per il naso， fummo veramente menati per il naso （populus vult decipi， ergo decipiatur）。 E così astuta era stata la combinazione di un uso ingannevole delle parole con un tono ingannatore che solo i cerebrolesi ne rimasero indenni， e sfuggirono all'inganno" "Il vero momento terapeutico， come un'illuminazione。 Il momento in cui si apre l'origjne del dolore e sai cosa fare。""Per la persona autistica l’astratto， il categoriale non hanno alcun interesse: ciò che conta è il concreto， il particolare， il singolare。" 。。。more
Amber
，
Finally finished this one！ I had a hard time getting through it， not at all because it was uninteresting， but because my attention has been focused elsewhere， so I mostly read this in small bits at a time， and interrupted by/interspersed with other readings。 It's quite engaging -- the stories are amazing， and the author's musings add interest as well。 Sacks comes across as endearing and meditative。 He seems to have a heart for his patients and an ability to connect with them， which he （probably Finally finished this one！ I had a hard time getting through it， not at all because it was uninteresting， but because my attention has been focused elsewhere， so I mostly read this in small bits at a time， and interrupted by/interspersed with other readings。 It's quite engaging -- the stories are amazing， and the author's musings add interest as well。 Sacks comes across as endearing and meditative。 He seems to have a heart for his patients and an ability to connect with them， which he （probably rightly） sees as integral to his work。 I wish all doctors were of the same attitude。 I did find myself looking up some of his references to terms and such that I was unfamiliar with。 The brain is so fascinating， and though we've learned so much about it in recent years， there is still so much to learn。 。。。more
Natália Adamíková
，
Dlho som sa tejto knihe vyhýbala。 Lákala ma， ale mala som strach čítať o chorobách， ktoré vyzerajú ako strata niečoho， čo nás ako ľudí determinuje， čo zasiahne človeka tak， že mu to úplne prevráti život naruby， zmení alebo znemožní normálnu interakciu s ľuďmi， skomplikuje vnímanie seba samého。 A keby kniha bola len prehliadkou diagnóz， tak by bola skutočne desivá。 Ale ona je prehliadkou ľudských príbehov。 Autor odkrýva mnoho vrstiev svojich pacientov， neredukuje ich na chodiace diagnózy， ale zau Dlho som sa tejto knihe vyhýbala。 Lákala ma， ale mala som strach čítať o chorobách， ktoré vyzerajú ako strata niečoho， čo nás ako ľudí determinuje， čo zasiahne človeka tak， že mu to úplne prevráti život naruby， zmení alebo znemožní normálnu interakciu s ľuďmi， skomplikuje vnímanie seba samého。 A keby kniha bola len prehliadkou diagnóz， tak by bola skutočne desivá。 Ale ona je prehliadkou ľudských príbehov。 Autor odkrýva mnoho vrstiev svojich pacientov， neredukuje ich na chodiace diagnózy， ale zaujímajú ho ako ľudia a osobnosti， odhaľuje pre laika nečakané aspekty， ktoré so sebou tieto choroby prinášajú a ak je niečo strašné， tak často to， ako málo porozumenia pre týchto ľudí máme。 V mnohých príbehoch sa dá nájsť čosi ako šťastný koniec， niektoré sú tragickejšie， a ako celok vyznieva táto kniha veľmi harmonicky。 Občas som sa strácala v pasážach， ktoré vyzerali skôr ako rozhovor autora s kolegami neurológmi， ktorí sú doma vo svojom odbore a ja ako náhodný svedok nemám čím prispieť do debaty， ale naozaj len občas。 。。。more
Ian Horton
，
Mind blowing clinical tales of rare psychological phenomena。 At times a touch academic and difficult to understand （for me） but fascinating non-the-less。
Weeping_ice
，
Mi riservo di riprenderlo quando potrò usufruire del cartaceo e non solo dell'audiolibro （per quanto Pino Insegno permette appieno di goderne）。Il cervello è stupefacente e molto viene dato per scontato， fino al momento in cui non veniamo messi di fronte alla perdita。 Ma in questo smarrimento dei sani vediamo come il cervello cerca vie alternative， trucchi， giochi o illusioni per non perdersi perché noi siamo il nostro cervello。I casi neurologici sono trattati si con linee mediche che voglio appr Mi riservo di riprenderlo quando potrò usufruire del cartaceo e non solo dell'audiolibro （per quanto Pino Insegno permette appieno di goderne）。Il cervello è stupefacente e molto viene dato per scontato， fino al momento in cui non veniamo messi di fronte alla perdita。 Ma in questo smarrimento dei sani vediamo come il cervello cerca vie alternative， trucchi， giochi o illusioni per non perdersi perché noi siamo il nostro cervello。I casi neurologici sono trattati si con linee mediche che voglio approfondire， ma soprattutto con un timbro umano che porta a vedere gli uomini e le donne coinvolte， non delle mere cartelle cliniche。 。。。more
Amanda Vankroonenburgh
，
3。5/5。 Recommended for those interested in neurology。 A solid collection of curious medical cases。 Some of the references and language are outdated。
Abanoub Raafat
，
استمتعت كتير بإسلوب الكاتب والحقايق العلمية وتفسيره لطرق المرض واختلافها。 كتاب مسلي طبيًا
Demeter
，
Mozog funguje ako väčšine？ Dobre je！ #trebacitat！
Richard
，
One of the things that I find most amazing and fascinating is when I find a science book that is timeless。The whole goal of science is discovery， to move forward， to uncover new secrets， to solve problems， to advance our understanding of the world。 Neurology has advanced light years in the past few decades。 With CAT and MRI advances scientists and doctors can now see what was previously unseen。 During brain surgery electronic probes can be placed on the brain so that we can learn what areas of t One of the things that I find most amazing and fascinating is when I find a science book that is timeless。The whole goal of science is discovery， to move forward， to uncover new secrets， to solve problems， to advance our understanding of the world。 Neurology has advanced light years in the past few decades。 With CAT and MRI advances scientists and doctors can now see what was previously unseen。 During brain surgery electronic probes can be placed on the brain so that we can learn what areas of the brain perform what functions。 Where previously scientists could only dissect cadavers， now they have living， breathing， and thinking human brains to explore。In The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat， Dr。 Oliver Sacks takes us for a tour of the brain and human thinking。 First published “way back” in 1970 and somewhat updated in this 2006 edition， Sacks explores a lot about the human mind。 In this book， Sacks has created four different sections; Losses， Excesses， Transports （alternate realities）， and the World of the Simple。What makes this book so interesting is the focus of Sacks himself。 Seeing past the pathology he has the rare ability to see the whole person。 Rather than fixating on the symptoms and problems of a patient’s pathology， he manages to see so much more。 On consultations Sacks manages to see positives in the individual no matter how incapacitating the illness。 Even those with severe neurological limitations still have abilities that can be explored and emphasized。I have been reading a lot about intelligence and consciousness， which is an huge and amazing field unto itself。 Reading Sacks’ book of “damaged” brains you get an incredible appreciation of the complexity of the human mind。 When things are working we take them for granted。 When something goes wrong， we are so annoyed。 And yet， with the complexity of the human mind and body it is amazing that it works at all！For some reason we are fascinated by things out of the ordinary。 We all “rubber neck” when we drive my a car accident or someone pulled over by the police。 We can stand for hours watching a house fire and in the news “if it bleeds， it leads” is still the driving principle。 I have a fascination of reading medical books - case histories of the unusual。 What is great about Sacks’ book is that he takes us much deeper than the curious and rubber necking into self reflection。Many years ago I remember watching the movie Awakening with Robin Williams， That movie was based on an earlier book of Sacks’ of the same name。 In The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat Sacks makes reference to this earlier book often。 The line between the “normal” mind and the “abnormal” mind is often as fine as a razor’s edge。I thoroughly enjoyed this book。 I was struck by so much of what Sacks had to say。 This book raises issues that I will ponder for a very long time。 。。。more
Agustín De
，
Lo mejor de Sacks （y lo que hace que el libro sea mucho más que una simple colección de curiosidades neurológicas） es el enfoque humano， propio de un novelista， con el que aborda la narración de cada caso。 Sacks se podría haber limitado a contar bien una serie de casos extravagantes y ya habría logrado algo interesante， pero hace mucho más: en cada una de sus historias recrea la humanidad del paciente y capta toda la dimensión trágica de sus padecimientos， al mismo tiempo que muestra las mil man Lo mejor de Sacks （y lo que hace que el libro sea mucho más que una simple colección de curiosidades neurológicas） es el enfoque humano， propio de un novelista， con el que aborda la narración de cada caso。 Sacks se podría haber limitado a contar bien una serie de casos extravagantes y ya habría logrado algo interesante， pero hace mucho más: en cada una de sus historias recrea la humanidad del paciente y capta toda la dimensión trágica de sus padecimientos， al mismo tiempo que muestra las mil maneras en las que el cuerpo se enfrenta a la adversidad， creando mecanismos de compensación que rayan en lo inverosímil。 。。。more
Gaia
，
I rarely read essays and/or scientific books， and the only book I read on neurology and neurosciences was some years ago。 But Sacks' book attracted me for his title first， and then for the style he uses to narrate his cases， because at the same time it's scientific and colloquial， full of bibliographic and evoking towards the situation。Despite the complex returning words （agnosia， apraxia。。。）， the cases are narrated well， and in most of them a medical explanation is given。 The fourth part is pro I rarely read essays and/or scientific books， and the only book I read on neurology and neurosciences was some years ago。 But Sacks' book attracted me for his title first， and then for the style he uses to narrate his cases， because at the same time it's scientific and colloquial， full of bibliographic and evoking towards the situation。Despite the complex returning words （agnosia， apraxia。。。）， the cases are narrated well， and in most of them a medical explanation is given。 The fourth part is probably what slowed me the most （"The world of the simple"）， because of the lack of empathy and understanding that went towards the lives of autistic people and intellectual disabilities - despite the fact that Sacks still respected his patients a lot， probably more than the majority of his colleagues at the time。 Medicine still has a lot to learn and discover on that， both in diagnoses， in treatments， and in empathy。Overall， it would deserve 3。5 stars （again， the final part kinda ruined it）， but the original opinion led me towards 4。 。。。more
Celinehabchi
，
Very interesting read。
Jeffrey
，
Fantastico， a volte assurdo ma proprio per questo meraviglioso， perché sono storie vere dei pazienti del dott。 Sacks。 Tra - amara- ironia fa scoprire le meraviglie e le bizze del nostro cervello。Veramente bello， ne ho letti altri di Sacks ma questo per me rimane il più curioso e il più interessante。Super consigliato。
Marina Menozzi
，
Personally， I loved this book。 Some parts where somehow boring to me， but I totally loved and was thrilled by some others。I suggest this book if you have some knowledge about brains' mechanisms or psychology/neurology otherwise it might seem a little hard to understand。My favorite story was the president's speech Personally， I loved this book。 Some parts where somehow boring to me， but I totally loved and was thrilled by some others。I suggest this book if you have some knowledge about brains' mechanisms or psychology/neurology otherwise it might seem a little hard to understand。My favorite story was the president's speech 。。。more
Zachary Good
，
2。5/5There were some interesting stories。
Laura
，
Some nuggets and vignettes I really enjoyed — not sure if it was just my reading mood or overall preference but would’ve preferred longer deep dive into people’s lives。 Overall， good meditation on the concept of identity and its neurological foundation
Şule
，
aşığım nörolojiye de fizyolojik psikolojiye de
Mary Kaimatzoglou
，
Το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο το κάναμε και στο μάθημα της ΒιοΨυχολογίας
Aleksandra
，
To jest naprawdę dobrze napisane， w ludzki i fascynujący sposób。 Jednak ze względu na to， że neurologia i psychiatria to dziedziny rozwijające się bardzo intensywnie， mam wrażenie， że niektóre treści są już trochę przestarzałe。 Brakowało mi także naukowego wyjaśnienia pewnych przypadków， które do tej pory zbadano dogłębniej niż tak jak podał to Sacks。 W skrócie: według mnie książka wymaga aktualizacji。
Prabodh Sharma
，
“You’re sick， my dear，” I said to myself。 “You’re feeling too well， you have to be ill！” This is not just a book on strange neurological disorders， but offers profound insights on nature of life itself。 A few gems。。。1。 "You have to begin to lose your memory， if only in bits and pieces， to realise that memory is what makes our lives。 Life without memory is no life at all 。 。 。 Our memory is our coherence， our reason， our feeling， even our action。 Without it， we are nothing。"2。 "To be ourselves we “You’re sick， my dear，” I said to myself。 “You’re feeling too well， you have to be ill！” This is not just a book on strange neurological disorders， but offers profound insights on nature of life itself。 A few gems。。。1。 "You have to begin to lose your memory， if only in bits and pieces， to realise that memory is what makes our lives。 Life without memory is no life at all 。 。 。 Our memory is our coherence， our reason， our feeling， even our action。 Without it， we are nothing。"2。 "To be ourselves we must have ourselves—possess， if need be re-possess， our life-stories。 We must ‘recollect’ ourselves， recollect the inner drama， the narrative， of ourselves。 A man needs such a narrative， a continuous inner narrative， to maintain his identity， his self。 If we wish to know about a man， we ask ‘what is his story—his real， inmost story？’—for each of us is a biography。 Each of us is a singular narrative， which is constructed， continually， unconsciously， by， through， and in us—through our perceptions， our feelings， our thoughts， our actions; and， not least， our discourse， our spoken narrations。 Biologically， physiologically， we are not so different from each other; historically， as narratives—we are each of us unique。3。 What is the meaning of freedom， "For we consider ourselves， and rightly， ‘free’—at least， determined by the most complex human and ethical considerations， rather than by the vicissitudes of our neural functions or nervous systems。The clinical tales in themselves are very interesting， while being extremely tragic。The lead story is of a highly accomplished musician who lost the sense of what geometric shapes represent。 Handed over a glove， he would say it is a "continuous surface infolded on itself and appears to have 5 outpouchings" but wouldn't identify it as a glove。 Given a rose， he would say it is， "a convoluted red form with a linear green attachment， lacks the simple sysmmetry of the platonic solids， although it may have a higher symmetry of its own， it could be an inflorescence or flower"。 There is no "grasping" the reality， but "deducing" it through key features and schematic relationships。 His paintings in the initial years were naturalistic and realistic which became abstract， geometrical and cubist in the later years and were chaotic lines and blotches of paint today。In another case， the patient continued to feel， "with the continuing loss of proprioception （the sense of your own body as your own）， that her body is dead， not-real， not-hers—she cannot appropriate it to herself。 If proprioception is completely knocked out， the body becomes， so to speak， blind and deaf to itself—and ceases to ‘own’ itself， to feel itself as itself。" There is another tale of two octogenarian females， who had loud music playing in their heads。 as they suffered from ‘reminiscence’， a convulsive upsurge of melodies and scenes。In another， a man commits a murder and has no recollection of it until years later when he had a head injury。 He now knew the minutest details of the murder: all the details revealed by forensic examination， but never revealed in open court—or to him。 He is tormented by his memories， tries committing suicide twice before reconciling with his strange past。The author also questions the neurological approach towards such patients。 He says， "our approach， our ‘evaluations’， are ridiculously inadequate。 They only show us deficits， they do not show us powers; they only show us puzzles and schemata， when we need to see music， narrative， play， a being conducting itself spontaneously in its own natural way。 We pay far too much attention to the defects of our patients， and far too little to what was intact or preserved。Reading this book， there is a sense of immense wonderment。 What is truly lacking， what is truly there and what are we。 For we exist in our memories， our visions and dreams are unreal， but then what to do。 The final， albeit superficial solution was given by Freud - work and love。 And so we survive， hoping we don't start hearing bells in our heads or visions in the sleep！ 。。。more
Elena
，
Una carrellata di particolari casi clinici nel campo della neurologia， trattati non nel modo distaccato che userebbe uno scienziato， ma con grande umanità ed empatia。 Il filo conduttore è il fatto che le persone hanno una grande capacità di compensare una mancanza con gli strumenti che hanno a disposizione， e anche chi ha un grave ritardo può avere un talento！ Sacks ci fa scoprire tutto il grande mondo che esiste nei meccanismi di compensazione e di equilibrio oltre i freddi test， che non fanno Una carrellata di particolari casi clinici nel campo della neurologia， trattati non nel modo distaccato che userebbe uno scienziato， ma con grande umanità ed empatia。 Il filo conduttore è il fatto che le persone hanno una grande capacità di compensare una mancanza con gli strumenti che hanno a disposizione， e anche chi ha un grave ritardo può avere un talento！ Sacks ci fa scoprire tutto il grande mondo che esiste nei meccanismi di compensazione e di equilibrio oltre i freddi test， che non fanno altro che confermare mancanze/eccessi。 Ogni essere umano persegue lo scopo primario di affermare la sua identità。 。。。more
Cerys
，
Very fascinating and surprisingly easy to read。 He doesn’t use too much terminology which in some books can make it feel almost cryptic if you haven’t got lots of knowledge of a subject
Janet
，
One of the five most important books of my life
Sara
，
The stories in this book are interesting， and I found myself bringing them up frequently to others as I read。 I liked the structure of the book， and Sacks is such a readable writer。 The content is well explained and his approach is very straight-forward。 Since this is a slightly older book， I did think some things may be out of date， but it can be motivating to do some more research on the progression of information of certain ailments mentioned in the book。
روان يوسف
，
أنا مفتونة بالإنسان والعالم اللي جواه اللي قد يعتقد المرء إنه بسيط؛ لكنه عظيم ومعقد ومليان حاجات مبهرةمش عارفة أكتب ايه نهائيًاهو الكتاب بيتكلم عن حالات غريبة بتقابل دكتور أعصابالواحد بيعرف قد ايه هو في نعمة، وإن جزء لا يُرى بالعين المجردة يتسبب في أمر عظيم。。。
Elisha Wright
，