Possessing the Dead: The Artful Science of Anatomy

by Helen MacDonald

With a rare blend of curiosity, delight in the unexpected, and an eye for detail, this account explores the disturbing history of the cadaver trade in Australia, England, and Scotland. Drawing on a rich array of material—and using Australian Aboriginal cricketer Charles Rose’s 1868 death in London as an example—this examination argues that no corpse lying in a workhouse, hospital, or asylum was entirely safe from interference despite the established laws that gave certain officials possession of the dead. Intriguing and informative, this chronicle reveals a gruesome past and the chicanery at play behind the procuring of bodies for dissections, autopsies, and collections.

Genres: Nonfiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Natasha (jouljet) · Rating 3 out of 5]

When touring universities in high school, I was so fascinated by the anatomy museums - the body parts on display, organs floating in jars on shelves. Skeletons assembled. But since then I have often wondered, who were those people, and were they cool with having their parts unburied, disconnected, and displayed for eternity?

This book examines the history of anatomy schools, from England and Scotland medicine men, to the practices here in the early Australian colony. How bodies were procured for examination, dissection, and study. Bodies robbed from graves, secreted from their death bed, wisked away before anyone even knew of the passing.

The need to advance scientific research and study is juxtaposed with the very sanctity of the rituals of death. Consideration of family and friends of the deceased, in contrast to the race for medical school supplies and practice.

The use of the poor, the lost, or the institutionalised in gaols, asylums, or floating prison hulks, is shocking. But perhaps this could be justified if indeed the bodies were treated with the reverence we would expect. These stories are horrifying and morbid - medical men and their overinflated self importance ruling all semblance of decency and respect.

There are interesting questions about the use, and secret distribution of Aboriginal people's remains, including a touring cricketer in early Ashes history, and the treatment of one of the then thought to be last Aboriginal Tasmanians, Truganini. This also opens up the conversation about other's remains in museums and collections around the world.

A review of consent, early laws, and the medical world's thirst for human remains to practice, broaden their knowledge, and teach, and how they came to be. The use of the vulnerable dead, and the disturbing acts that treated bodies as commodities. An eye-opening read, leaving much to think about.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book follows the history of the acquisition, in Britain and Australia, of cadavers for anatomical and medical research. It looks at the iniquitous days of resurrection men and Edinburgh's Burke and Hare murders, which led to the establishment and enforcement of the Anatomy Acts, and discusses how the state-sanctioned trade in corpses was carried out and justified by reference to the boogie-man threat of Burking and public lawlessness. Issues of class, or at least of poverty and wealth, being the dividing line determining which side of the scalpel one found oneself on, are also discussed. This book is meticulously researched and also very readable, and full of bizarre, sometimes gruesome, details. My only criticism is that the author has a tendency to state details in a way that leads the reader to understand that 'all right-thinking and decent people must feel horror at this'. Even leaving aside the relative moral, religious or ethical assumptions of the 19th as opposed to the 21st Century, it felt a little preachy at times. Otherwise, a fascinating insight into what went into the mortar for the foundation stones of modern medicine.

[Xanthi · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all, this was an interesting book. It trod a fine line between being 'dry' reading and being sensationalist and gory. I felt a few of the chapters dragged a bit here and there but not enough to make me want to stop reading. Most of the book as a Victorian era focus, with England, Scotland and Australia covered. I found the chapter on Truganini sad and frustrating. I felt that what happened to her body was a good example of what happens when men of science forget or put aside their humanity 'in the name of science'. In many cases, ego and professional competition is what drove some to turn a blind eye to ethics. What was very telling, was the passage about noted anatomists of the past and what they wanted and had done with their bodies once they died.
The last chapter brought the story to modern times, but only briefly. One thing that was of interest is the continuing ambiguity and gaps in the law in western societies, to this day. Plus, the many opportunities and motivations towards breaking existing laws to protect a corpse. I finished reading the book, wondering who can be certain what happens to your body and its various parts after death? It was a sobering thought.

[Andrew McMillen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides a fantastically detailed insight into how the science of human anatomy has progressed over the last two centuries, particularly through key events and characters based in Scotland, England and Australia. I read it as part of my research process while working on a book of my own, and found myself regularly impressed by Helen MacDonald's thorough and well-written accounts of key moments in the history of anatomy studies. It is clear that a huge amount of research went into her project, too, judging by the 50+ pages of notes and references. But MacDonald's greatest achievement is synthesising all of this material into an engaging, enlightening narrative that never gets bogged down in tedious academic minutiae. I'm glad that I read this as part of my research, and I recommend it to any reader interested in learning more about humans learned anatomy prior to the widespread adoption of body donor programs in more recent decades.