What manifests outwardly as the symptoms of a disorder are often attempts by the brain to provide order, regularity, and a consistent self-narrative for the patient.The neurological profession has often misunderstood neurological disorders, thinking of them solely as illnesses that must be “cured.” But sometimes, the disorder gives meaning, hope, and identity to the patients experiencing them-and the patients have no wish to be “cured.”.Thus, a patient with impaired powers of speech might excel at the visual arts, or a patient suffering from an inability to understand words might be better at discerning the non-verbal parts of language. The brain has a remarkable ability to compensate for neurological shortcomings in one area with neurological strengths in another.As we’ll see, the brain is the source of our very humanity, giving us our identity and deepest sense of self.Īs we study the lives of these patients, some key themes emerge:
In sharing these stories, Sacks weaves a narrative that demonstrates the remarkable complexity of the human brain and its extraordinary capacity to adapt. In The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Sacks presents the stories of his patients, all of whom were suffering from some form of neurological impairment. The late neurologist Oliver Sacks dedicated his life to studying the mysteries and extraordinary powers of the human brain. 1-Page Summary 1-Page Book Summary of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
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