Description
In two decades of clinical work with Vietnam veterans, psychiatrist Theodore Nadelson sought to understand a seeming paradox about his patients: even veterans being treated for post traumatic stress disorder often still felt attracted to the danger and violence of combat and killing. How this could be possible became a central focus of Nadelson's work and thought, as he looked to veterans' stories and within himself for pieces of the human puzzle.
This compelling book is the result of that exploration. In it, Nadelson confronts a dark side of human psychology with sensitivity and depth, revealing startling truths about the allure of violence. Among the topics he addresses are the ways in which the concept of war shapes boys' lives from an early age, what happens when killing becomes a job, and how memories of the thrill of combat affect a soldier after the war is over. He probes the aftermath of September 11, including the historic implications of women's experience in the military. A veteran himself, the author weaves together insights from his own clinical and military experience and from the moving narratives of former soldiers with his thoughtful analysis of readings from world literature to answer tough questions: What does our attraction to killing mean for the future of war and civilization? What implications does it have for the way we understand peacetime violence in our society?Reviews
"Compellingly journalistic."—Publishers Weekly"A triumph."—Mark Sauer, San Diego Union-Tribune "This challenging book should be read by all of those with an interest in military psychiatry and what happens to individuals when subjected to the intense stress of combat."—The Lancet "This work should be required reading for every official in Washington and every high-school student . . . A brilliant book that concisely lays out the unrelenting madness of war."—Mark Sauer, Florida Newspaper "An excellent, comprehensive examination of war and killing. It is a well-written and concise work that has considerable relevance for all clinicians providing treatment to those experiencing the effects of trauma . . . This book represents a compelling and thoughtful examination of the horrors of war and man's inhumanity to man."—Theodore B. Feldman, MD, JAMA "In a review, I cannot do justice to the book's philosophically and psychologically complex, sometimes tortured, but invariably stimulating arguments."—Stanley J. Morse, PsycCRITIQUES "The author's clinical insight is tempered both by the compassion of belonging to the same generation as the men who sought his healing and his own military experience."—Donald D. Denton "Powerful and painful . . . On one level it is about psychiatrically impaired Vietnam veterans; at another level it is about fundamental relationships, how they form, what they depend on, and how they can be perverted."—Psychiatric Services "Ted Nadelson has mapped the complex terrain of men and war in this searing and eloquent book. I can't imagine a better time in our history for this stunning exploration of what war means to men—and does to men."—Ellen Goodman, Pulitzer Prize–winning syndicated columnist, Boston Globe "Dr. Theodore Nadelson's book on the experience of killing in warfare and combat is the most significant, valuable, and original contribution to this extremely important subject that I have ever read. The book is not only, in my opinion, intellectually brilliant—some of its insights virtually take one's breath away—but also exceptionally moving and poignant."—James F. Gilligan, M.D., Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, University of Pennsylvania and author, Violence: Reflections on a National Epidemic "Moving . . . challenging both in its topics and its insights."—Adrienne Harris, International Journal of Psychoanalysis
Author Information
Theodore Nadelson, M.A., M.D. (1930–2003) was a clinical professor of psychiatry and vice chair for psychiatric education at Boston University School of Medicine, and chief of psychiatric service at Boston Veterans Administration Medical Center.
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