Book Review: Punishing Disease: HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness
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Book Review: Punishing Disease: HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness
Introduction 医学书评代写
Punishing Disease: HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness by Trevor Hoppe is one of the most comprehensive books on the diseases that not only raises awareness about the disease but also traces how it was viewed back then and how it is being viewed now. How people of faith termed HIV or AIDS as a punishment from God for decreasing moral standards of the society and capitalize on it to further their religious agenda. The author explains how HIV and AIDS were transformed from a mere sickness to badness and how the disease is being looked at the character defining trait of a person. From criminalizing HIV and AIDs to adding to the sufferings of the affected individuals, Hoppe encapsulates it all in a way that few other authors have done it in the past. However, the author has taken a completely different approach – it’s something people don’t really see in every book available on the subject. In this essay, how well Hoppe has managed to communicate his message to the audience would be analyzed. Moreover, areas where more information or a bit of details under specific heading could have enhanced the beauty of the book will also be analyzed.
Summary of Content 医学书评代写
AIDS ever since its advent has been associated with punishment. It has always been treated as a crime rather than as a sickness and people from almost all walks of life made demands to punish the people who have contracted HIV or aid. All this started long before the medical professionals decided on the name of this new found sickness. People living with HIV or AIDS have become a marginalized minority community that has been stigmatized for having a sickness.
Trevor details all of this in the book, and in each chapter has taken a new angle to define how a sickness has been criminalized and what led to it. The author conducted thorough research on the subject and identified how religious leaders influence the society as well as politicians and call for making this sickness a crime and how their influence and believe actually paved the way for criminalization of HIV. The author highlighted the gravity of the situation by identifying how criminalization of HIV was leading to criminalization of other diseases, and how the subject of criminalizing sickness have evolved from a academic concern to a real life issue.
Punitive Disease Control is the first section of the book that endeavors to analyze the practices and policies in place in a collective manner.
In the first section, Hoppe maintains his focus on how the punitive strategies and coercive policies have failed to get the desired outcome to control the disease but put a strain on policies regarding public health. In the first chapter, Trevor defines how AIDS brought back ages-old mentality of people to use coercive measures to control the disease and quarantine those who are affected. In the second chapter, the author discusses the shift in public perception about the disease and how people starting blaming the victim for contracting HIV.
People started to believe that those who are HIV positive have brought it upon themselves and only they are to blame for their condition and their actions. The advertisement and public opinion – every message that came out from the majority unaffected population puts blame on the victims of the disease. However, the reorganization of health authorities’ approach regarding prevention and control of this diseases started in 2000s. The third chapter discusses local health officials’ evolution to policing the behavior of people living with HIV in order to prevent the further spread of the disease.
The book’s second section discusses the timeline of laws in the United States regarding disclosure and exposure of HIV. 医学书评代写
The author traces how a sickness becomes a crime only due to the perception of people. The chapters in this section maintains focus on how fear and ignorance paved the way to criminalize HIV. The author explores different dimensions of how criminalization made people with HIV to suffer more. The second section starts with the fourth chapter, in which Trevor analyzes the debate around legislation of HIV related criminal laws in the country. In the next chapter, the author takes its readers to the courtroom where HIV related cases were decided on the basis of legislation.
Despite the fact that the advancements in medical field related to HIV have completely changed the outlook of the disease, but inside the courtroom these changes were not seen for years to come. Victim Impact is the last chapter of the book and the second section, in which the author determines which communities were affected greatly in the United States due to criminalization of HIV. The minority communities in the US were greatly affected as supported by the exampled presented by the author in the last section.
Analysis and Evaluation of the Book 医学书评代写
The book has taken an approach that tells its readers what happens in cases when countries are attracted to punitive strategies and coercive measures to control and prevent the spread of any disease. The book is really comprehensive and documents different examples very well and tells the readers how people, religious leaders, and politicians in the United States made efforts to criminalize a sickness. The book not only raises awareness about the dangers of controlling diseases via punitive measures but also serves as a wakeup call that shows the consequences of using criminal laws against any sickness.
The author has presented a very clear analysis and it can be said that he manages to deliver his message across in a great way. 医学书评代写
Certainly, addition of more examples or information would have made this book better, but it’s already good and serves it purpose. The book shows the efforts the author has put in to write a detailed account of how criminalizing sickness had been done. The book also shows the flip side of using the wrong approach to control a disease. The language and tone is such that even a layman can understand the thoughts of the author. Hoppe presented a well-documented argument on the fact that the way people see and define an illness have various substantial political, social and health consequences.
People living today may consider that the health related policies and legislation of the United States were guided by science, but Trevor’s detailed account of HIV criminalization in Punishing Diseases tells a different story. It shows how the definition of a disease can change the way people look it and how a definition can make people resort to punitive measure for controlling a disease. The author tries his best to tell the readers what would happen if individuals will be blamed by the society for contracting certain disease.
Conclusion 医学书评代写
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that Trevor has succeeded in conveying his message across and the book is a valuable addition on the subject. The book is not only comprehensive in every aspect but also tells the readers the implications of criminalizing sickness along the way. The author explains how different elements of the society have paved the way for criminalizing sickness. Simply put, the answer to any disease or illness is not punishment and legislation should not be made about public health on the basis public opinion but on the basis of science.
Reference
Hoppe, T. (2017). Punishing Disease: HIV and the Criminalization of Sickness. Univ of California Press.
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