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Title: Circumcision: A History of the World's Most Controversial Surgery by David L. Gollaher ISBN: 0-465-02653-2 Publisher: Basic Books Pub. Date: February, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (12 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Cultural History of Circumcision
Comment: This is not an academic history text or a manual for parents who are trying to decide whether to circumcise their infant sons. But it will probably be of interest to both groups; after all, the list of books covering male circumcision is quite a short one, and Gollaher's book is a fascinating read.
David Gollaher provides a very readable cultural history of the practice of circumcision for the general public, explaining the orgins and prevalence of this custom in modern American medical practice. He succeeds in his goal of making the familiar strange and the strange familiar. The strange is made familiar as Gollaher discusses the role that circumcision has played in a wide variety of cultures from aboriginal cultures to Judaism to Islam. And the familiar becomes more and more strange as Gollaher reviews the forces that caused circumcision to become adopted into the medical community in America. The more one reads about what the foreskin is and does, the odder it seems that this is such a routine procedure.
I'd recommend this to anyone interested in a fairly balanced historical account of circumcision and the forces that have made it such an entrenched practice in the West.
Rating: 3
Summary: Not helpful in our decision; lots of fringe info
Comment: I did not find this book to very relevant when trying to decide on circumcision for our son. Bottom line is that it is a preference issue and not black and white. I'm sure the book is excellent in it's scholarship, but did not help me sort through the RELEVANT, CURRENT reasons pro and against circumsizing.
There is lots of information about primitive circumcision rituals in many other countries and much comparison with female circumcision (?). There is also alot of information about wierd groups that are trying to restore men's foreskin.
I guess it is good to know some about the history of circumcusion and why we are doing it today.....but, I really wanted more current, relevant reasons not to circumsize.
Rating: 4
Summary: Accurate but Cursory
Comment: David Gollaher has delivered an effective synopsis of the history of circumcision, the first of which has been published since the late nineteenth century. Much has happened in the last 100 years. It is unclear what motivated Gollaher, a historian with his doctorate in history from Harvard University, but his conclusions are dead on: if circumcision were a new medical procedure it would never garner favor or approval. Other than a few minor factual errors, his account is accurate. By giving a factual representation of the actions of circumcision's current adovates, he portrays these individuals in a very negative way. For this reason, those who favor male circumcision will find his book unacceptably accurate. I felt the book barely scratched the surface of circumcision's rich history. Each chapter left me wanting more information. I also expected more historical analysis. Rather than just recounting the historical facts Gollaher, with the benefit of his expensive education, should have provided the reader with an understanding of how the facts fit into a historical context. The facts are interesting, but what do they mean? The book, perhaps to assure a certain number of sales, is aimed at the general public, who will not doubt find the topic and treatment of it interesting. For those interested in circumcision on an academic or activist level, the book does not offer much new information. Still, it is reassuring that a mainstream American publisher had the courage to put an accurate portrayal of circumcision in print.
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