Achilles in Vietnam : combat trauma and the undoing of character / Jonathan Shay, M.D., Ph.D.

  • Shay, Jonathan
Date:
2003
  • Books

About this work

Description

From the publisher: In this strikingly original and groundbreaking book, Dr. Shay examines the psychological devastation of war by comparing the soldiers of Homer's Iliad with Vietnam veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Although the Iliad was written twenty-seven centuries ago it has much to teach about combat trauma, as do the more recent, compelling voices and experiences of Vietnam vets.

Publication/Creation

New York : Scribner, 2003.

Physical description

xxiii, 246 pages ; 22 cm

Edition

1st Scribner trade pbk. ed.

Bibliographic information

Includes bibliographical references (pages 233-236) and index.

Contents

PART I: Betrayal of "What's right" -- Shrinkage of the social and moral horizon -- Grief at the death of a special comrade -- Guilt and wrongful substitution -- Berserk -- PART II: Dishonoring the enemy -- What Homer left out -- Soldiers' luck and God's will -- Reclaiming the Iliad's gods as a metaphor of social power -- PART III: The breaking points of moral existence: what breaks? -- Healing and tragedy -- Conclusion.

Languages

Where to find it

  • LocationStatus
    History of Medicine
    LG.PX.6
    Open shelves

Permanent link

Identifiers

ISBN

  • 0684813211
  • 9780684813219
  • 0689121822
  • 9780689121821