Eccentrics: A Study of Sanity and Strangeness

by David Joseph Weeks, Jamie James

A SCIENTIST LOOKS AT ECCENTRICS-AND THE ODDITIES THAT KEEP THEM SANE

After years of research, a practicing psychotherapist has proof that eccentrics are usually healthier than the rest of us-as well as more creative, more idealistic, more opinionated, and much more fun to read about. Dr. David Weeks fills his hook with fascinating case studies, including Joshua
Abraham Norton, who once proclaimed himself Emperor of America and even convinced many people to consider themselves his Dr. Patch Adams, founder of the Gesundheit Institute and a physician who believes that humor fosters healing and dresses as a clown to treat his patients; and Florence
Foster Jenkins, a would-be diva whose love of music was exceeded only by her lack of talent, but whose wealth enabled her to stage a recital at Carnegie Hall, Entertaining, funny, and thought provoking, Eccentrics introduces a series of extraordinary men and women-and encourages us to enjoy our own
healthy eccentricities as well.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science, Sociology, Biography, Mental Health, Philosophy

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Chandrashekar Gangaraju · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am grateful to the service user who gave this book to the Consultant Psychiatrist that I was working with a couple of years ago. I found it interesting and bought my own copy.

This book is a product of psychological research on over a thousand eccentrics. It is an absolute joy to read. It is packed with facts and quotes with some interesting details about people from history that I did not know. Some descriptions are very funny and some you would think are just unbelievable.

The authors state that most psychiatrists and psychologists have very little direct experience with eccentrics and that they are unlikely to diagnose harmless eccentricity even when it might be obvious because the mental health services are overwhelmingly geared toward identifying and treating diseases. They found no direct link between eccentricity and mental illness and that they generally are more happy and live longer healthier lives than the so called normals. There is a lot that we could all learn from eccentrics in general.

The book celebrates eccentricity and indirectly talks about the wide range of human thinking and behaviour. It made me think about what is normal, what is illness/disorder and made me wonder if we have as a society crafted a very narrow concept of normality. Are the social media forcing people to conform to this normality? It reminds me of the tyranny of the majority that John Stuart Mill had talked about.

[Julio The Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

The batty, mad, loony in you will love this book, co-written by a medical doctor and a musicologist. Eccentrics are not lunatics; quite the contrary. In the words of Tom Stoppard, they are "stark, raving sane." They (I mean we) presume the world around is out of wack, functioning so normally it reeks of boredom and mediocrity. The cast of characters featured here includes Ignatious Donnaly, the American Populist and "prince of crackpots" for inventing the theory of the lost continent of Atlantis; Glenn Gould, musical genius, hypochondriac, and misanthrope, and Victoria Woodhall, the first woman to run for president of the United States and who never got around to informing Frederick Douglass that he was her Vice Presidential running mate. Incidentally, Dr. Weeks, a Scotsman, delves into the question of why the U.K. has produced more eccentrics per capita than any other country.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The historical review is probably one of the more interesting parts. The study seemed to have such a broad view of eccentrics it was hard to draw any conclusions. The scientific parts are sometimes interesting but many times a bit pointless. Some very good writing in here and I suspect it comes from the co-author Jamie James. The whole theory of a social mutation, that is the eccentric is society's way of experimenting with norms is a fascinating little tidbits. Indeed, one of many tidbits that makes one wishes there had been more.

[Mary Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

William Irvine, in "On Desire: Why we want what we want" explains eccentrics better than David Weeks. Weeks just discusses how eccentrics are odd. Irvine explains that "Eccentrics, . . . refuse to relinquish sovereignty over themselves. They refuse to live for other people. They have their own vision of what is valuable in life and which lifestyles are worth living. If their vision is at odds with the common view, so much the worse for the common view."

[LuisJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read.
Written in an accessible style yet without dumbing things down.
Covered many interesting aspects of the study itself along with the inevitable case-studies/examples; but also manages to cover important philosophical questions about scientific-method, and the intersection of sanity with madness.
I got this as a library loan but will be looking for hardback edition to purchase for my collection in the future.

[Sylvia Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

lovely book - fascinating and made me laugh out lound but have so much admiration for eccentrics

[East-Daikon]

I liked this book at the beginning but it didn't sustain the early promise. Here are two examples of eccentrics according to this book, one female, one male:



This lady seems awesome! If money permitted I would just spend all day doing what I want too. I hope she's still out there, doing her thing and being content (and ignoring the people who say she's got a psychological problem and trying to change her!)

Now to contrast this example with one of the male eccentrics:



Not to be nitpicky but the first woman is just wanting to live her life in peace. There was a whole chapter on eccentric women who did things like this or other 'eccentric' things like marrying spouses that people didn't approve of. WTF! Can people just leave us all alone to live the lives we want to live? The chapter on women was extremely relatable. Everyone seemed so normal but they were labelled as outsiders for deviating even a teeny tiny bit from the norms of society.

Meanwhile, men are given greater leeway. The second man wants to commit incest and inflict violence on his children. I wouldn't describe that as 'eccentric'. That crosses the line from being unusual/harmless to obviously problematic. YOU CAN'T LUMP THE TWO UNDER THE SAME UMBRELLA 🚩

(Also the second man being labelled eccentric for sharing this with a potential mate I believe is incorrect. This is literally how pedophiles screen their partners.)

[Janie Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

“ By flouting norms of behavior that most of us never question, eccentrics remind us how much of our own liberty we needlessly forfeit, and how great is our ability to forge our own identities and shape our own lives, if only we will use it.”
An intern read, I came away feeling eccentricity is a spectrum…perhaps a continuum …yes there are fairly clearly delineated characteristics but by the authors own admission…and by virtue of eccentricity…all traits are not required…Quirky to eccentric, hmm… really out there…obviously eccentric…yeah easier to identify. What I personally identified with , being a person who at the least marches to the sound of their own drum…health status and the eccentric made incredible sense. As I have gotten older and even less and less concerned with propriety…become more irreverent…more genuine in my own skin…it is true I have also been even happier, more joyous…Yes, more eccentric as seen by others…but less stressed, better lab values…healthier…Interesting that lifelong eccentrics are statistically healthier and life linger. Conformity comes at a cost … the stricter the higher the cost…Even medieval churches had a Festival of Fools…a few days to act out your eccentricity….

[Loki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly interesting book, but it had a lot more potential than was fulfilled. I would have appreciated deeper research into, say, eccentricity and schizotypy (they only assessed them for schizophrenia) or schizoidism. I would also have loved to have learned more about the people in the study - the quotes given were tantalising at best!

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. Some of the examples are highly entertaining. The authors state that eccentrics are generally happier and healthier than non-eccentrics.

[Balloon Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun observations about oddballs.

[Suzie Sims-Fletcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted this to be ... more.

I kept reading because there were shining moments.

I felt like I would get to a potential juicy part-and was let down.

um. eh.

[Charles Berman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The strength of this book is that it is highly entertaining. Large sections of it are taken up by reportage of unusual people in history deemed eccentric by the writers, and present-day interesting personalities they have encountered. The compiled details of of these extraordinary people automatically make for diverting reading.

Unfortunately the data is gathered in the service of a psychological study with a subject, goals, and conclusions that all seem extraordinarily ill-defined. The writers admit that "the eccentric" must be defined totally qualitatively, then go about finding people they deem eccentric and declaring sweeping conclusions out of nowhere about them.

There may be drops of insight here and there, but any there are are all couched in bad science -- the goal of which sometimes seems to be justifying self-congratulation on the part of the eccentric. This will reward those who are looking for stories about eccentric individuals, but I am sure there are volumes out there with a better wheat-to-chaff ratio.

[Elle Belle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book about how and/or what makes Eccentric people behave the way they do. This book looks into the physiology, psychology, and environment of Eccentric people. It will be interesting to anyone who has ever known an eccentric person (everyone seems to have that one strange Aunt or Uncle), or fears they may be that Aunt or Uncle...

A good read for everyone interested in the subject, but I would say it will be most helpful to Drs. and nurses, and anyone who works with people.

I learned that Eccentricity is not a mental illness, it is not a new phenomenon, and is found in every culture. Male Eccentricity is most likely celebrated, while Female Eccentrics are more often locked away.

I expected to read something of the Autism Spectrum in this book, but it wasn't even mentioned. this was surprising to me, as my first instinct when meeting an Eccentric person would be to understand him or her as somewhere on the spectrum of Autism giftedness.

[Aer Bluewilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm conflicted on this book. I like it because it is very interesting and I enjoy the positive and lighthearted way the Mr. Weeks approaches his study. At the same time, I feel that the study may not be organized well,and that the he didn't do a lot of exploring into some of the subject's reasons for certain "quirks", like the lady who was a kazoo player and refused to throw away anything, she hoarded. I do agree that doctors are too quick to give a diagnosis to a person sometimes who maybe just quirky. It is a very fun read, and I definitely recommend it to others interested in the subject of eccentric people.

[Benito · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the writing in this first ever scientific study of eccentric personalities can be a bit stuffy at times it's worth ploughing through this tome for the fascinating tales of feather-brained freaks such as the King Of San Fransisco, who brought joy to thousands everyday, including himself, through letting his perculiarities flow freely.

Interesting to note that empirical studies by the authors show show that freaks live longer, happier lives than other people in the community. So there's some good doctors advice for you - get weird!

[Mario · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insightful book on eccentrics written by scientists, not journalists. An interesting journey in the mind of the eccentric based on the centuries-long sampling compiled by the authors. An informative comparison of eccentric behavior with the "normal" or conventional behavior at each time a given eccentric lived, as well as a comparison with signs of mental illness.

Excellent book. I'm almost done reading it.

[Gary Portillo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good little window into a handful of people’s means and method of life, that just so happen to be considered eccentric. The author sets up a little punch list of common threads they all share, and then let’s the lives of those mentioned fill in the rest. A fun read and that makes me a bit more comfortable with my own odds and ends; as long as you keep going, no matter how you’re going, you’ll be fine.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you do something dumb & your friends are rubbing it in or you just keep letting it bring you down, I want you to remember this: Sir Isaac "Gravity" Newton was hugely into alchemy.

Chances are, people will forget how spectacularly dumb you were & will eventually only remember the important stuff.

[Onda · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy-to-read popularisation about a big (perhaps the first) study on eccentrics. Has some drawbacks, sure (see other reviewers), but it does convey an important message about respect towards abnormality. With many case examples, the book even made me think that, as a society, we should cultivate our quirks, be honest with ourselves as a way to more fulfilling life.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eccentrics is an enjoyable work, filled with amusing anecdotes of dozens of eccentrics. The book's flaw is in its science. As the authors readily admit, there hasn't been much of any study into eccentricity, so they made much of it up on the fly. While there were a few interesting findings, the majority of the non-anecdotal writing is quite humdrum.

[rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The "science" of this book bothered me. I can't tell whether the study was crappy to begin with or whether it was dumbed down for popular press. The book would have been more enjoyable if it stuck to character profiles and didn't try to make scientific claims.

[Mark Hundley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this because it was published by Kodansha Globe, a publisher that I grew to enjoy. Fascinating study of famous eccentics including Joshua Norton, the emperor of North America, the famous Patch Adams and a host of lesser known people with questionable sanity.

[Alexander Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating book about visionary people who seem very strange. Let's admit that the world is full of strange people and few of them make their mark, but genius sometimes reveals itself through some of the remarkable stories in this book.

[Eucryphia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty tasty oddities. Not quite as eccentric as you might hope, however.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had greater expectations for this book...

[Sheffielder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite fascinating, though more a series of anecdotes than the presentation of a scientific study.

[BLACK CAT · Rating 5 out of 5]

COOL AND INTERESTING PEOPLE ANALYZED FOR THE FIRST TIME FROM A SCIENTIFIC PERSPECTIVE. IT DEFINES ECCENTRICITY FROM A PSYCHOLOGICAL VIEW.

[Shayne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay. I enjoyed hearing about the eccentrics encountered in the study, but not nearly as much fun as an Oliver Sacks.

Did decide to nurture some more eccentric aspects of my own life.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book when I read it. Should have been 4 stars but i had to give it 5 because Emperor Norton grew up in Grahamstown, the town in South Africa where I studied.