The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales Chapter Summary & Analysis - Part One: Chapter Six, Phantoms Summary

Part One: Chapter Six, Phantoms Summary and Analysis

This chapter is comprised of four brief stories that tell about people who suffer from phantoms of differing kinds. The first tells of a sailor who lost his right index finger in an accident. For forty years after the accident, the man constantly worries he will poke himself in the eye simply because the index finger was in the extended position when lost. The man still "feels" his finger is there, fully extended, and will cause further injury if he is not careful about how he touches his face with that hand.

The next anecdote discusses the importance of phantom limbs for amputees. When an amputee receives a prosthesis, it is almost necessary the patient sense a phantom limb in order for the artificial limb to work properly. One patient of Dr. Sacks tells how he must "wake up" his phantom limb each morning before he can properly put...
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