In the spring of 1889, a burgeoning Brooklyn newspaper, the Daily Eagle, printed a series of articles that detailed a history of midnight hearses and botched operations performed by a scalpel-eager female surgeon named Dr. Mary Dixon-Jones. The ensuing avalanche of public outrage gave rise to two trials--one for manslaughter and one for libel--that became a late nineteenth-century sensation. Vividly recreating both trials, Regina Morantz-Sanchez provides a marvelous historical whodunit, inviting readers to sift through the evidence and evaluate the witnesses. "Conduct Unbecoming a Woman" is as mesmerizing as an intricately crafted suspense novel. Jars of specimens and surgical mannequins became common spectacles in the courtroom, and the roughly 300 witnesses that testified represented a fascinating social cross-section of the city's inhabitants, from humble immigrant craftsmen and seamstresses to some of New York and Brooklyn's most prestigious citizens and physicians. Like many legal extravaganzas of our own time, the Mary Dixon-Jones trials highlighted broader social issues in America. It unmasked apprehension about not only the medical and social implications of radical gynecological surgery, but also the rapidly changing role of women in society. Indeed, the courtroom provided a perfect forum for airing public doubts concerning the reputation of one "unruly" woman doctor whose life-threatening procedures offered an alternative to the chronic, debilitating pain of 19th-century women. Clearly a extraordinary event in 1892, the cases disappeared from the historical record only a few years later. "Conduct Unbecoming a Woman" brilliantly reconstructs both the Dixon-Jones trials and the historic panorama that was 1890s Brooklyn."A doctor, a woman, a libel case, a trial -- the stuff of novels. In thisgripping historical narrative, Morantz-Sanchez skillfully weaves these elementsinto an insightful and contextualized social history pertinent to issues ofgender and medical authority still vital to the present day. Highlyrecommended!" --Judith Walzer Leavitt, University of Wisconsin, Madison"A major contribution to social and medical history, Conduct Unbecomming AWoman is a fascinating case study that raises important issues about gender,medicine, professionalization, and urban middle-class life at the end of thenineteenth century. Sparkling writing, meticulous research, and acute analysiscombine to make this work history at its best." --James H. Jones, DistinguishedUniversity Professor, University of Houston"The interweaving of these components draws a vivid, textural picture ofmedicine as it was practiced in the mid to late 1800's." --Frances K. Conley,M.D., Professor, Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine"[This] book lifts the underskirts of American medicine to reveal many ofits long-term hidden problems, including medical malpractice, informed consent,hospital mortality rates, medical judgment, care of the poor, and stretching theboundaries of acceptable medical practice to include experimental procedures.These problems still appear unsolvable and continue to plague medical practicetoday."--JAMATwo sensational trials, the first for manslaughter, the second for libel, gripped the city of Brooklyn at the end of the ninetheenth century. In 1892 the Brooklyn Daily Eagle began detailing a history of midnight hearses and botched surgeries performed by a scalpel-eager female surgeon, Mary Dixon Jones. What Morantz-Sanchez unravels is a classic whodunit of history. From the patients' bedsides to the operating room, from the news-room to the courthouse, Morantz-Sanchez questions the evidence, recreates motives, and above all uses the trial and medical practice of Dixon Jones to tell a gripping narrative of a remarkable female surgeon operating at the very forefront of American science and medicine and the risks run by both patients and surgeons at the origins of gynaecological surgery."In a sensitive and sophisticated analysis, Morantz-Sanchez unpacks the complexities of the Dixon Jones story in such a way that the protagonist's guilt or innocence is almost unimportant....If this trial never achieved the place in American memory won by that other Brooklyn spectacle, the Beecher-Tilton trial, it has happily, been restored to us with its manifold meanings by her cogent analysis."--Journal of the History of Medicine"Morantz-Sanchez offers a rich serving of human drama, courtroomcontestation, clashing medical therapeutics, and the negotiations of class. Inthis book, she shows once again how fertile courtroom trials can be for teasingout the murmuring cultural currents of a given place and time. If this trialnever achieved the place in American memory won by that other Brooklynspectacle, the Beecher-Tilton trial, it has, happily, been restored to us withits manifold meanings by Morantz-Sanchez's cogent analysis." -- Cynthia Russet,PhD, Yale University, Journal of the History of Medicine, Vol 56, Jan2001"Morantz-Sanchez's thoughtfully written, thoroughly documented book dealswith much more than the bare bones of Dixon Jones' story....Excellent."--Booklist"Regina Morantz-Sanchez breathes new life into an important episode in thehistory of gynecology. Her insightful narrative of the career and trials ofMary Dixon Jones, an ambitious female physician accused of murder and mayhem,provides important insights into the complicated politics that surroundedwomen's bodies and female professionalization in the late nineteenth centuryAmerica." --Joan Jacobs Brumberg, Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow andProfessor"Riveting and insightful, Regina Morantz-Sanchez...offers a spotlight on acritical series of turning points in public attitudes toward American Medicineand gender roles. Combining sophisticated analysis with page-turning prose,this book will alter definitively the way we think about masculinity, femininityand the professions in the late 19th century America." --William H. Chafe, AliceMary Baldwin Professor of History"In the spring of 1889, a burgeoning Brooklyn newspaper, the Daily Eagle, printed a series of articles that detailed a history of midnight hearses and botched operations performed by a scalpel-eager female surgeon named Dr. Mary Dixon Jones. The ensuing avalanche of public outrage gave rise to two trials - one for manslaughter and one for libel - that became a late nineteenth-century sensation." "Vividly recreating both trials, Regina Morantz-Sanchez provides a marvelous historical whodunit, inviting readers to sift through the evidence and evaluate the witnesses. Like many legal extravaganzas of our own time, the Mary Dixon Jones trials highlighted broader social issues in America, issues that were catalyzed by the transformation of cities - like Brooklyn - from ordered communities dominated by nineteenth-century bourgeois elites to sprawling, multi-ethnic urban landscapes. Moreover, the trials unmasked apprehension about not only the medical and social implications of radical gynecological surgery, but also the rapidly changing role of women in society. The courtroom provided a perfect forum for airing public doubts concerning the reputation of one "unruly" woman doctor whose life-threatening procedures offered an alternative to the chronic, debilitating pain of nineteenth-century women."--BOOK JACKET. Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights ReservedRegina Morantz-Sanchez is Professor of History at the University of Michigan.Regina Morantz-Sanchez recreates two trials in which Dr Mary Dixon Jones is accused of manslaughter and libel due to two botched operations. The result is a historical whodunnit, with readers invited to sift through evidence and evaluate witnesses.In the spring of 1889, Brooklyn's premier newspaper, the Daily Eagle, printed a series of articles that detailed a history of midnight hearses and botched operations performed by a scalpel-eager female surgeon named Dr. Mary Dixon-Jones. The ensuing avalanche of public outrage gave rise to two trials--one for manslaughter and one for libel--that became a late nineteenth-century sensation. Vividly recreating both trials, Regina Morantz-Sanchez provides a marvelous historical whodunit, inviting readers to sift through the evidence and evaluate the witnesses. This intricately crafted and mesmerizing piece of history reads like a suspense novel which skillfully examines masculine and feminine ideals in the late 19th century. Jars of specimens and surgical mannequins became common spectacles in the courtroom, and the roughly 300 witnesses that testified represented a fascinating social cross-section of the city's inhabitants, from humble immigrant craftsmen and seamstresses to some of New York and Brooklyn's most prestigious citizens and physicians. Like many legal extravaganzas of our own time, the Mary Dixon-Jones trials highlighted broader social issues in America. It unmasked apprehension about not only the medical and social implications of radical gynecological surgery, but also the rapidly changing role of women in society. Indeed, the courtroom provided a perfect forum for airing public doubts concerning the reputation of one "unruly" woman doctor whose life-threatening procedures offered an alternative to the chronic, debilitating pain of 19th-century women. Clearly a extraordinary event in 1892, the cases disappeared from the historical record only a few years later. Conduct Unbecoming a Woman brilliantly reconstructs both the Dixon-Jones trials and the historic panorama that was 1890s Brooklyn."Morantz-Sanchez's thoughtfully written, thoroughly documented book deals with much more than the bare bones of Dixon Jones' story.... Excellent."--Booklist "Riveting and insightful, Regina Morantz-Sanchez...offers a spotlight on a critical series of turning points in public attitudes toward American Medicine and gender roles. Combining sophisticated analysis with page-turning prose, this book will alter definitively the way we think about masculinity, femininity and the professions in the late 19th century America." --William H. Chafe, Alice Mary Baldwin Professor of History "Regina Morantz-Sanchez breathes new life into an important episode in the history of gynecology. Her insightful narrative of the career and trials of Mary Dixon Jones, an ambitious female physician accused of murder and mayhem, provides important insights into the complicated politics that surrounded women's bodies and female professionalization in the late nineteenth century America." --Joan Jacobs Brumberg, Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow and Professor "A doctor, a woman, a libel case, a trial -- the stuff of novels. In this gripping historical narrative, Morantz-Sanchez skillfully weaves these elements into an insightful and contextualized social history pertinent to issues of gender and medical authority still vital to the present day. Highly recommended!" --Judith Walzer Leavitt, University of Wisconsin, Madison "A major contribution to social and medical history, Conduct Unbecomming A Woman is a fascinating case study that raises important issues about gender, medicine, professionalization, and urban middle-class life at the end of the nineteenth century. Sparkling writing, meticulous research, and acute analysis combine to make this work history at its best." --James H. Jones, Distinguished University Professor, University of HoustonThe author presents the case of surgeon Dr. Mary Dixon-Jones, who in 1889 Boston was the subject in two court cases -- one for manslaughter and the other for libel -- which became a 19th century sensation."Conduct Unbecoming a Woman makes compelling reading. Dixon Jones was a 'difficult woman' because she dared to challenge gender stereotypes and traditional ideals of medical professionals. Morantz-Sanchez uses the story of Dixon Jones as a window on a wider world in which professionalism,local boosterism, medical specialization, and gender politics shaped events of drama and spectacle."--Medical History
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