Newyorkitis is a 1901 book by surgeon John H. Girdner describing "a condition of mind, body, and soul" that he had observed among patients living in the New York City borough of Manhattan. [1]
Newyorkitis is a 1901 book by surgeon John H. Girdner describing "a condition of mind, body, and soul" that he had observed among patients living in the New York City borough of Manhattan. [1]
John H. Girdner (March 8, 1856 –October 27, 1933) [2] was a prominent New York surgeon and an associate of the noted surgeon Frank Hamilton. Both Girdner and Hamilton treated President James Garfield after Garfield was shot in 1881. Girdner was the inventor of a "telephonic bullet probe" that came into use before the first x-rays[ further explanation needed ], and was a pioneer in skin grafting. [3] He taught at medical schools and was the author of numerous satirical and philosophical articles for magazines. [4]
Girdner ascribed a variety of physical symptoms to living in Manhattan, including nearsightedness caused by the presence of buildings in all directions, ears irritated by constant noise, and a "rapidity and nervousness and lack of deliberation in all muscular movements." [1] "Newyorkitis" symptoms also included "haste, rudeness, restlessness, arrogance, contemptuousness, excitability, anxiety, pursuit of novelty and of grandeur, pretensions of omniscience, and therefore prescience, which of course undermines any pleasure taken in novelty." [5]
Newyorkitis was described as "satirical" in obituaries at the time of Girdner's death, [4] [2] and in reviews at the time of publication. The Brooklyn Eagle's review said that "most people have declared that a vein of sarcasm, or satire, runs through the book", and another review described it as an "amusing satire." [6] [7] The Kansas City Press observed in 1901: "We suppose that the author intends his book as a serious criticism of New York conditions, however it is impossible that any one with a sense of humor should be able to read the book without an appreciation of its satire, whether intentional or not." [8] The New York Times reported in 2001 that a family history described Newyorkitis as ''a tongue-in-cheek book ... satirizing the provincialism of life in New York City." [5]
A 2020 Lapham's Quarterly article, however, observed that the press "saw evidence of Girdner’s syndrome everywhere." [1] A New York Tribune article on "Newyorkitis" reported in 1905 that “there were three thousand cases of men falling dead or dying suddenly, an increase of five hundred over any previous year.” [1] In 1908, the Tribune reported that treatment for the condition was being offered at a New York YMCA. [9] It was described as "straight psychology applied directly to the abnormal conditions of urban business and social life." [9]
Earlier, in 1881, New York neurologist George M. Beard wrote that civilization, when combined with "steam power, the periodical press, the telegraph, the sciences and the mental activity of women", brought nervousness and nervous disease to urban dwellers. [5]
Rhinoplasty, commonly called nose job, medically called nasal reconstruction, is a plastic surgery procedure for altering and reconstructing the nose. There are two types of plastic surgery used – reconstructive surgery that restores the form and functions of the nose and cosmetic surgery that changes the appearance of the nose. Reconstructive surgery seeks to resolve nasal injuries caused by various traumas including blunt, and penetrating trauma and trauma caused by blast injury. Reconstructive surgery can also treat birth defects, breathing problems, and failed primary rhinoplasties. Rhinoplasty may remove a bump, narrow nostril width, change the angle between the nose and the mouth, or address injuries, birth defects, or other problems that affect breathing, such as a deviated nasal septum or a sinus condition. Surgery only on the septum is called a septoplasty.
Lewis Henry Lapham II was an American writer. He was the editor of the American monthly Harper's Magazine from 1976 until 1981, and from 1983 until 2006. He was the founder of Lapham's Quarterly, a quarterly publication about history and literature, and wrote numerous books on politics and current affairs.
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Warner Miller was an American businessman and politician from Herkimer, New York. A Republican, he was most notable for his service as a U.S. Representative (1879-1881) and United States Senator (1881-1887).
George Miller Beard was an American neurologist who popularized the term neurasthenia, starting around 1869.
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