Though Paul at first seems dubious about being able to make judgment calls about a patient’s survival prospects and quality of life, throughout his career, as he gains more and more experience, he grows more and more accustomed to the idea and makes these calls frequently. This moment is one of the first instances in which literature and science combine to spur Paul’s curiosity and understanding of the world around him. Last Updated on February 7, 2020, by eNotes Editorial. What works of literature does Paul Kalanithi reference in When Breath Becomes Air? When he picks the latter, Paul baffles his biology adviser (“When you grow up, are you going to be a scientist or a . Written in the last year of the author's life, while he was dying of Stage IV lung cancer, the memoir recounts Kalanithi's life story, beginning with the onset of symptoms, then taking us back in time to trace his development from a bookish teenager to an inquisitive student and finally to a talented and well-trained resident with a bright future in neurosurgery ahead of him. When Paul is ten, his family moves from Bronxville, New York, to Kingman, Arizona. Since the book is the real story of a man and his battle with cancer, several themes and problems are confronted that are very useful, as cancer has no cure. Paul wonders how his father convinced his mother, who has a severe phobia of snakes, to move to Kingman. In both circumstances, Paul has a responsibility to be careful, or to risk doing irreparable damage. Find a summary of this and each chapter of When Breath Becomes Air! This is true not only at the ob-gyn, but also in Paul’s later surgeries. Once he finally feels at home in Kingman, Paul himself starts sharing “country facts” with outsiders. Our, LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in. ?”) but feels that this is the best option for forging new... We’ve discounted annual subscriptions by 50% for our End-of-Year sale—Join Now! Though Paul’s days are spent doing important work, time continues to slip away from him in service of building a future career. Not only does this provide Paul with opportunities in the future but also gives him a lifelong love of literature and language. LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in When Breath Becomes Air, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. At this point, Paul has built his potential and is beginning to envision what the rest of his life looks like. The When Breath Becomes Air Community Note includes chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and … The “country facts” also provide an early example of how textbook knowledge may be important, but knowledge that is passed down and experienced is sometimes more valuable. Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. Paul finishes college at twenty-three years old, med school at twenty-nine, and residency at thirty-six, showing how much he values training and preparation in pursuit of finding a meaningful career and life. To him, the service he provides is not only a job but also a calling and a responsibility to support and care for human life to the best of his capabilities—a responsibility in which he must grow to be comfortable. When Breath Becomes Air is neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi's heartbreaking memoir of life and death. This summary includes key lessons and important passages from the book. When Breath Becomes Air content, as well as access to more than 30,000 additional guides and more than 350,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts. This problem comes to the forefront during Paul’s sophomore summer, when he considers two jobs: interning for a prestigious primate research center or working as a prep chef at Sierra Camp. Already a member? Whereas before Paul felt that words were a “supernatural force,” here they start to lose power without real-world experience to back them up. The remainder of the memoir, then, will explore how he carries these interests beyond school and into his career. At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a … Paul’s descriptions of dissection not only signal a shift in subject but a shift in writing style: whereas before Paul had focused on words, here Paul focuses on concrete actions and visceral feelings. The scalpel represents the paradox of surgery: in order to improve someone’s (or in this case, the babies’) health, they must first be cut open. The Kaplan-Meier curve serves as an example of the limits of pure science. Life without language, Paul argues, can deprive a person of their most fundamental human connections. The possibility of standing nine hours straight eventually becomes much of Paul’s reality, as he frequently performs many complex and long operations during his neurosurgery residency. Nuland’s actions are heroic to Paul because they demonstrate his intense dedication to his patients. Check out our revolutionary side-by-side summary and analysis. Though a cadaver’s humanness is undeniable. Regardless, Paul’s mother comes to occupy herself with other matters once the family settles into their new home. He sees the doctors work as hard as possible to ensure that the babies survive, even if their chances are grim. As Paul opens on this section, he sets up a theme that will be prevalent throughout Part I: the tension between science and literature. Yet at the same time, he doesn’t question how meaningful the work is. ©2020 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Paul’s mother quickly learns that the Kingman school system is ranked among the worst in the country. How does Paul Kalanithi explore the themes of life and death in When Breath Becomes Air? Though Paul and Lucy’s relationship prior to his diagnosis is not explored very fully, later Lucy explains how deeply in love they were throughout the various stages of the relationship. At the end of Paul’s college career, he seems to have found an idyllic balance of his interests, and between learning and experiencing. Paul’s description of the brain’s own mechanisms for protecting itself from bad news shows another protective feature of the brain in trying to shield itself from tragedy, in the same way that some doctors protect themselves. Being unable to communicate with family members deprives life of much of its core meaning. His search for meaning in his own life is furthered by providing others with meaning in theirs, demonstrating his deep compassion. Paul enjoys the many works of literature he encounters through this exercise, particularly George Orwell’s, , which his mother has him read when he is ten. This is one example in which science and language work together to make up human identity and experience. One day, Abigail recommends that Paul read something other than his preferred “high-culture crap” and lends him a book entitled. Paul’s early experience in the desert opens up another recurring theme. Paul understands that even though he is working with dead bodies, human lives and identities are sacred. Even so, doctors still strive to ensure their patients’ survival. The brain’s language centers are off-limits because the brain’s language abilities are essential to forming human relationships, and doctors sometimes make judgment calls not to save patients if these abilities have been lost. Paul recalls his father as a fine cardiologist beloved by his patients; as a parent, though, Paul felt his father to be distant and only sporadically available to his children. Paul is accepted into Stanford, but the academic year begins a month later than most other colleges. Paul’s hard work in identifying patient’s values allows him to make those difficult judgment calls during surgery in order to give patients a future that they would want to have. This short book has so many layers of meaning and so many interesting juxtapositions—life and death, patient and doctor, son and father, work and family, faith and reason—I know I’ll pick up more insights the second time around. Paul must use the tact of language in order to provide Mrs. Lee with room for hope. My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class.”, Satan: His Psychotherapy and Cure by the Unfortunate Dr. Kassler, J.S.P.S. For the first time, Paul fully realizes his duties as a doctor. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. The inspiration and understanding these books afford him spur his desire to be a writer later in life. I am certain I will read When Breath Becomes Air again. Paul will make this same call with his own life at the end of the memoir. His book When Breath Becomes Air is a memoir about his life and illness, battling stage IV metastatic lung cancer. eNotes.com will help you with any book or any question. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. Additionally, the reader can also see Paul’s religious background, which was passed down from his father, aiding in his awe of nature. While Jeff is lost, Paul embodies this strength as he works to provide physical and emotional care despite the fact that he knows fighting death is a losing battle—an idea that will be true as he fights his own death. Paul finishes the phase of medical school that focuses on textbook learning, moving on to getting practical experience as he is assigned to various hospitals and clinics. It then examines how these questions are intensified by the author’ Mari’s mental strength slips in this moment, as she quietly hopes for a worse condition for the patient so as to avoid the surgery. This reinforces the idea that time is spent most meaningfully when one is fully engrossed in the present. But the questions he poses also serve as examples of judgment calls that he and his patients sometimes have to make before and during surgery. The book discusses Kalanithi’s lifelong fascination with questions of human biology, mortality, and meaning. This and a lot of other question are a part of this book named When Breath become Air. Does when breath become air mention fiction anywhere in the book. When Breath Becomes Air: Part 1. The importance placed on experience will recur in Paul’s medical school experience as well. This connects to Paul’s earlier question of what kind of life exists without language. At the same time, it demonstrates how senseless, random, and sometimes certain death can be. Paul finishes the first section of his memoir by revealing the death of his friend, demonstrating that the lives of doctors can be just as tragic without the mental strength needed to endure constant death around them. Word Count: 1158. They're like having in-class notes for every discussion!”, “This is absolutely THE best teacher resource I have ever purchased. Unlike some of the other students in his class, Paul understands the essence of being a doctor for him. Though he always strived to provide the best care for patients in treatment and surgery, he sees that the way in which he speaks with patients can be just as important. Mr. Michaels is an example of a patient who has lost these crucial language functions, and therefore loses the ability to form human connections. T.S. This perhaps represents the most difficult of judgment calls that doctors must make, and Paul must face it often. Summary of When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi | Includes Analysis . The death of Paul’s friend Laurie marks a turning point for Paul. He is told various so-called “country facts” about the landscape by the locals, though these “country facts” are largely exaggerations concerning the supposed lethality of the wildlife, designed to make fools of newcomers and tourists. He identifies his own values as a reaction to his father, who was often absent. This juxtaposition of science and literature continues through college for Paul, each serving its own purpose in providing meaning. Paul enjoys the many works of literature he encounters through this exercise, particularly George Orwell’s 1984, which his mother has him read when he is ten. At the end of his studies, however, he aims to connect literature more concretely to his scientific studies, finding both to be crucial in his understanding of life. From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. Paul continues to develop his interest in science, even beyond becoming a neurosurgeon. The two eloped from India to New York City, much to the displeasure of his father’s Christian family and his mother’s Hindu relations (Paul mentions that his maternal grandmother refuses to call him by his Western first name, preferring to use his Indian middle name, Sudhir). Though he too seems to become somewhat numb to his “donors,” there are moments in which he remembers that they too had meaningful lives. While his friends are attending classes at their universities of choice, Paul spends time alone in the desert or with his girlfriend at the time, Abigail, who works at the only coffee shop in Kingman. “When Breath Becomes Air PDF Summary” Paul Kalanithi was born on April 1, 1977, in Bronxville, Westchester County, New York to a Christian family hailing from India. He exercises not only care but also judgment in gathering her family and speaking to her calmly, as he begins to gain experience in helping patients deal with difficult decisions. When Breath Becomes Air Part 1, Section 1 Summary As part 1 (titled “In Perfect Health I Begin”) opens, Paul remembers his path to being a doctor. The book discusses Kalanithi's lifelong fascination with … Perhaps this is also an unspoken concern when Paul decides to become a father, even though he knows he will be absent from most of his daughter’s own life. Surgeries that involve these language centers involve many precautions, and the patients are often awake and talking during the surgeries. Paul’s first encounter with the tragedies of brain injuries is another formative experience for him. The care with which Paul must deliver babies is not unlike the care with which he must operate on patients’ brains later in his career. The irony in Paul’s statement, of course, is that he will very soon understand the suffering of his patients, and he will only grow more empathetic as a result. The remaining part of his medical school education will focus on gaining these crucial capabilities. Once again, Paul’s mother’s values determine much of his life path. In surgery, time almost becomes irrelevant. Once again, Paul sees the potential harm in doctors trying to separate themselves from tragedy. It is interesting that he uses the word “drowning,” because it literally means a loss of breath, which relates to Paul’s own death from lung cancer and lung failure (as well as the title of the book). Paul aims to link his two interests in his master’s thesis. Both of them are faced with daily heartbreaks, but while Paul is able to move forward even in his sadness, Jeff becomes overwhelmed by the constant tragedies. Again, Paul emphasizes how much time is lost in building up potential for the future. When Breath Becomes Air - Part 1, Section 3 Summary & Analysis Paul Kalanithi This Study Guide consists of approximately 45 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of When Breath Becomes Air. “Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. Another of. The head of the lab is a professor of electrical engineering and neurobiology and a fellow second-generation Indian affectionately called “. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. When he picks the latter, Paul baffles his biology adviser (“When you grow up, are you going to be a scientist or a . But he quickly understands that any mistakes he makes can alter patients’ lives, as with Matthew. Lucy realizes earlier than most other doctors how much their lives will be surrounded by death, and how much mental strength will be required to aid their patients and deal with their fatalities, as well as to perform their everyday tasks. Mistakes in the cuts Paul makes in patient’s brains can result in irreversible damage to mental or physical health. This anecdote demonstrates how, upon reflection, he was not fully emotionally supportive of patients and their families, instead trying to distance himself from tragedy. Nuland’s grandmother’s prayers not only represented her language ability, but also her ability to hope. Paul again underscores how he will need to support his patients and have a strength of his own to get through the day. Their relationship was characterized by “short, concentrated (but sincere) bursts of high intensity.”. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. Paul’s own path is similar to V’s, as he undergoes treatment and returns to his work, trying to make his efforts to get well meaningful and provide him with more time. The pressure of this schedule once again demonstrates the stamina required of doctors in order to make it through medical school and residency. Paul makes his commitment to providing better emotional support for patients very clear. . Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. This is my book summary of When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi. . It is this type of first-hand knowledge that enables neurosurgeons to be able to map the brain and form an idea of how it works. Whereas before he attempted to separate himself from death, he knows that instead he must treat each patient with the care that he would treat a close friend. When Breath Becomes Air (Book) : Kalanithi, Paul : "For readers of Atul Gawande, Andrew Solomon, and Anne Lamott, a profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir by a young neurosurgeon faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis who attempts to answer the question What makes a life worth living? In the book When Breath Becomes Air, Paul KALANITHI’s Essence was the line between life and death and what makes human’s life meaningful. He quickly comes to realize that these two educations will be extremely different. He dual-majors in English and biology, hoping a synthesis of the two subjects will reveal to him what makes life meaningful—particularly as one of Paul’s concerns is that he is not living his life to the fullest. In his last year of neurosurgical residency at Stanford University, Paul Kalanithi experiences negative changes in his health. After school starts, Paul fears he is becoming too inwardly focused through his extensive study. Mari represents another example of how doctors must be willing to take mental and physical beatings for their patients. When the surgery is cancelled, she realizes how shameful this hope was. Though the book his girlfriend gives him is not of high quality, its descriptions and assumptions about science, which cause him to investigate science classes in college, proves to be as formative as any classic work of literature. Log in here. This will parallel Paul’s later journey in his neurosurgery residency. The contrast between the two families’ states represents the difference between success and failure for a doctor, and the life-changing consequences that their actions can have. Again, this represents a case of “judgement calls”: that removing a tumor has a greater cost than the potential risk of surgery. Part memoir, part guidebook, and part philosophical investigation, the book is the story of his life, his work, and the difficult—but ultimately rewarding—process of coming to terms with his own death. This problem comes to the forefront during Paul’s sophomore summer, when he considers two jobs: interning for a prestigious primate research center or working as a prep chef at Sierra Camp. Does When Breath Becomes Air mention fictional stories anywhere in the book? Paul loses some of his empathy over his career, but gradually refocuses it and works to be “with” patients in their most vulnerable moments instead of simply “at” those moments, as he says later. A story that is a motivation for all who want to live a long worthless. Part 1, Section 4 Summary After completing his two years of extensive study at medical school, Paul enters the second half of the program, spent in the hospital and the clinic. He discovers that the study of the mind is not only scientific, but extremely personal as he sees how catastrophic brain damage can truly be. Of course, Paul uses dramatic irony here, as the reader understands that Paul will never fully realize that potential because of his lack of time. Physical, mental, and emotional strength are all required in order to be able to put patients’ needs above their own. Young Paul is fascinated by the desert terrain and wild animals that are a part of daily life in Kingman. Even before Paul starts to work with patients directly, he sees the necessity of treating them with care rather than simply trying to complete their paperwork. Though Paul knows the risks of brain surgery, he also sees that it would likely have little negative effect on her life and would prevent her seizures. Even with routine pregnancies, Paul understands the magnitude of delivering a baby and the experienced hand it requires. Thus patients depend on him for his skill and experience in surgery as well as his guidance in treatment, and Paul feels the weight of that responsibility very tangibly. He is willing to go above and beyond what is standard for medical students in order to save the life of a patient, something that Paul believes all doctors should do. Nuland also describes the gradual deterioration of the human body, with it the human mind. He becomes numb to his patients until hearing of a friend who died in a car crash, reawakening his empathy for those in these tragic situations. In passing on the responsibility of breaking the bad news to Mrs. Lee, the doctors in the ER attempt to remove themselves from more death, but also delay her diagnosis and rob her of more of her valuable time. Preview: When Breath Becomes Air is a memoir about Paul Kalanithi's experiences as a doctor and as a terminally ill patient. Verbal nuance is not only more accurate but also more compassionate here. This is also an early example in which physicians become inured to the conditions of those with whom they work. A doctor, his father spent most of his time away from home, which resulted in Paul’s disenchantment with medicine even before he developed any interest in it. His lack of a future beyond his training underscores the tragedy of his situation. Order to be intrigued by the brain ’ s values determine much of his situation,... 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