By Tom Lynch

Everybody worries. Some more than others. Some have reason to do so. Some do not.

The great paradoxical affliction of hypochondria has become a laughable curse; sometimes it simply elicits mocking, sometimes Woody Allen wakes in a cold sweat and proclaims to the dark, lonely room, “I’m dying!”

But under the hysterical sheen of the surface lies a deep sadness and hatred—yes, hatred—of knowledge. If we were all ignorant to all things, we would have no stresses. But if one was to attain the front-to-back knowledge of his bodyworks, how could he not go insane? How many panic attacks has WebMd.com caused since its launch? Most likely, the number is comparable to the number of lives its helped.

Famous men and women in history have suffered from hypochondria: iconoclasts like Andy Warhol, authors like Marcel Proust, men of science like Charles Darwin. Irish author Brian Dillon’s new book, “The Hypochondriacs: Nine Tormented Lives” (Faber and Faber), analyzes nine historical figures—Warhol, Proust and Darwin, but also James Boswell, Charlotte Bronte, Florence Nightingale, Alice James, Daniel Paul Schreber and Glenn Gould—and their varying degrees of consuming psychological illness. Dillon doesn’t poke fun at his subjects; quite the contrary, actually, as at times he’s in agreement with their worries. But his book is no research paper either, as its littered with humorous anecdotes and factoids, the sort of things only fit for the secret lives of the famous. Read the rest of this entry »

RECOMMENDED

A few days remain for this year’s Chicago Humanities Festival, an annual epic event full of worthy lectures, panels and performances. On November 12, John Adams delivers a lecture at the Art Instutute of Chicago on how fiction writers describe in their work the act of listening to music, with a special emphasis on Thomas Mann and Marcel Proust. On November 13, political commentator Barbara Ehrenreich speaks at Northwestern’s Thorne Auditorium about her most recent work, “Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy,” as well as women and culture in general. On November 14, Francis W. Parker School hosts a panel discussion titled “Four Women Talk About Being Funny,” featuring four women from Chicago’s theater scene: Martha Lavey (pictured), Leslie Buxbaum Danzig, Tanya Saracho and Lauren Katz. The festival wraps up on November 15 with a day of events that includes a discussion of mad scientists in film, called “Scared Silly,” with Scott Kurtis, Rocky Colb and Sidney Perkowitz, at the Chicago Cultural Center.  (Tom Lynch)

The Chicago Humanities Festival runs through November 15 at various venues across the city. For complete details, visit chicagohumanities.org.

RECOMMENDED

Great Wisconsin poet John Koethe, winner of the Frank O’Hara Award for Poetry, has for years taken inspiration from both his beloved home state and masters like Proust and William  Wordsworth. A significant and largely revered contemporary poet, Koethe published his latest collection, “Ninety-fifth Street,” last month, a thrilling assemblage of blurry-eyed glances to the past. Koethe’s strongest attribute has always been his ability to reach a larger audience—through both his matter-of-fact use of language as well as his willingness to insightfully detail common themes. Everyone has a past that’s viewed wistfully with equal amounts of pride and regret, and as Koethe grows older, it seems his appreciation for his walks down memory lane grows as well. Now in his mid-sixties, thoughts of mortality have taken residence in the poet’s mind and heart, and he invites us along for the modest journey. Lovely work from Koethe, as always. (Tom Lynch)

October 9 at Book Cellar, 4736-38 N. Lincoln, (773)293-2665, at 7pm.