Chapter 1: Silent Multitudes: Charles Bonnet Syndrome Summary and Analysis

Sacks opens Chapter One with the story of Rosalie, a blind, 90 year-old nursing home resident who suddenly began seeing hallucinations of grand parties, horses, and other scenes. The images were very real to her, and her eyes even moved with the scene, as though we were watching it. Sacks examined her, and found her to have Charles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS), a disease discovered originally in the late 1600s. Charles Bonnet, a scientist, had a grandfather with the disease, and Bonnet was the first to describe it in full detail. However, his writings were lost until the beginning of the 20th century. The writings detailed floating images of handkerchiefs or balls, young women or men who were not there, and these lasted for days or weeks, but would always come and go...