TOW #16- Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks (IRB post 2)

My IRB for this marking period was Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks. Oliver Sacks is a well-known, reputable neurologist, which provides him with automatic ethos when he writes the book. The purpose of the book is to inform people about the research he has done connecting music and the brain. In order to do this, Sacks relies heavily on the use of examples of patients with whom he has dealt. In addition to helping the reader better understand the idea that Sacks is trying to portray, the examples also provide a personal touch to the book, creating the idea of “real people” to whom the reader can connect. For example, Sacks writes, “This was very clear with Rosalie B., a post-encephalitic lady who tending to remain transfixed for hours each day...” (256). Sacks then proceeds to explain how music managed to awaken Rosalie from this frozen state, providing the reader with a clear understanding, and connection and/or sympathy, about Rosalie’s situation. Although in my first post about this book I thought that the book was written for the general public, upon further reading, I think this book is written for people who are more learned about brain issues and other medical terms. For example, in the example above with Rosalie, I do not know what “post-encephalitic” means without having to look it up. Although this may be just because I am a high school student, I am going to make the assumption that this is not a word that the general public would understand. However, I do not think you have to be a neurologist either to read this book, since I still was able to understand the main idea about the problem with Rosalie, as well as the other main ideas throughout the book, just not the specific issue. Finally, Sacks also provides himself with ethos on the topic by writing about his personal experiences, using personal anecdotes. For example, Sacks writes, “Though I was born into a musical household and music has been important to me personally from my earliest years, I did not really encounter music in a clinical context until 1966...” (248). These little comments about his personal life and experiences help not only provide Sacks with ethos, but also help him to form a better connection with the reader.