Georges Gilles de la Tourette: Beyond the Eponym

The 19th Century brought many medical advances and discoveries in neurology, with the famed Parisian La Salpêtrière hospital at its center. Medical giants such as Jean-Martin Charcot, Joseph Babinski, and even for a short time Sigmund Freud, walked these halls, so it is a wonder that, an equal among these men, very little exists in the literature on Georges Gilles de la Tourette.

This biography is the first comprehensive volume to delve into the life, scholarship, writing, and hobbies of the famed doctor. In Part One, we learn Georges’ family history, follow his schooling and mentorship under Charcot, travel to the Worlds Fair of 1900, evade an attempted assassination, all before succumbing to death by syphilis. Part Two provides an in-depth analysis of his neurological and psychiatric works, notably the epynomous neurological disorder that will forever remain “Tourette’s Syndrome.” Part Three looks at the lighter side of Georges, inspecting his favorite past-times as poet, historian, and art critic. Part Four brings an extensive bibliography of Georges’ complete body of work.

Author Olivier Walusinski pulls together unpublished family archives, Georges’ correspondence with the Parisian journalist Georges Montorgueil, journal articles, and police archives to shed an original light on the famed doctor’s life and lasting legacy. These archives have never before been studied or made available to the public, making this one of the first and most comprehensive biographies available and a must-have for any medical library.

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