Pox: Genius, Madness, and the
Mysteries of Syphilis by Deborah Hayden reached me for review, not by my
choice, but because my editor thought that I would like it because of my
interest in health and psychology. Well, I did like it, for its contribution to
my understanding of a disease, normally kept under wraps, syphilis. Because of
its mode of transmission, syphilis, like other STDs (Sexually Transmitted
Diseases) is not discussed in public. Thus it is not surprising that
biographers also did not publicly label the person about whom they are writing
as syphilitic.

That leaves the field wide open for
post-mortem speculation, since the person, long dead, cannot defend his/her
(mostly his) reputation.

Deborah Hayden is a layperson, who
gained a lot of knowledge about the disease from extensive reading.  Whether she is an objective skilled
biographer is another point, which I can’t answer positively. She has dug a lot
of information about each personality that she chose to cover in Pox and
tried to fit them into the straight jacket of syphilis, which she assures us is
a great mimic (of all other diseases), and which, she claims is not ruled out
even in a negative Wasserman Test. Then, anyone and everyone could be labeled a
syphilitic.

Pox deals with questions
such as whether Lincoln and Hitler had that disease, whether the great
Beethoven and Vincent van Gogh etc., were great because of the gift of
syphilis, a gift, which is double-edged, since it first increased their
creative madness, before sending them to an early grave from several
complications. Even where the earlier biographers or medical investigators did
not come up with the definitive diagnosis of syphilis, Hayden raises the
question. And since it cannot be disproved, that leaves the reader wondering,
what is the purpose?

I would recommend the book to the
average lay reader only for one thing. If you are interested in understanding
syphilis, this is a good place to start, although a rather high priced
introduction. But not much pricier than the lack of knowledge. And yes, the
book will appeal to those who have a taste for the odd, who are interested in
reading about the famous. I could only think of one thing when I finished the
book, fame did not prevent infection.

It is definitely not a book for the
squeamish or the prudish, or easily offended moralists. And it is not easy or
interesting to read either.

© 2004 S. V. Swamy

S. V. Swamy,
India.

Categories: General