Sherwin Nuland, M.D., clinical professor of surgery at Yale University, spoke Wednesday evening in the annual Philip Hallie Lecture entitled “Learning from Nazi Eugenics: The Dangers of Self-Righteousness.” His book, “How We Die: Reflections on Life’s Final Chapter” won the National Book Award in 1993.
“Eugenics was a scientifically and even mathematically based discipline, and many of [the Nazis] actually thought of it as a measurable, verifiable branch of biology that held the promise of becoming an enormous force for good,” he said.
The notion of eugenics, the improvement of the human race by better breeding, stemmed from late nineteenth-century social Darwinism and gained scientific support in the early twentieth century. Nuland said that scientists and leading scholars believed that their evidence was well researched and would contribute to social progress.
According to Nuland, beginning in 1934, the Nazis held eugenics as the basis of their persecution of Jews. In an attempt to create a master race, the Nazis used this belief as justification for their actions.
The concept of eugenics was gradually discredited in late 1940s, after the end of the Second World War, Nuland said.
He emphasized that those people who did research in eugenics were well intentioned and thought that they were contributing to social progress. They simply weren’t skeptical enough about what they were promoting.
“The Germanic medical establishment was heir to a grand tradition of accomplishment and international respect. When it took on eugenics as a worthy goal, it was convinced of the righteousness of its own intent,” Nuland said.
Nuland pointed out that German medical profession’s involvement with the Nazis and their degradation of medicine to suit the government’s purposes should be as important a subject of study as the Holocaust itself. People working in the medical fields were the most complicit in carrying out the Nazis’ policies. For example, they performed euthanasia and sterilized disabled children so they could not pass on hereditary diseases.
“The art that uses science to guide it, namely medicine…is the underlying source of the momentum that drove the application of eugenic principles,” Nuland said.
He said that, like with much of history, the ability to evaluate a situation many years later increases awareness.
“Looking back with the wisdom of hindsight, it seems so clear that eugenics had always been a dangerous notion.” Nuland said.
Although some audience members said the lecture was not startlingly original, they found his step-by-step presentation of the rise of eugenics intriguing.
“He was dealing with issues that are both historically important and highly relevant today,” said Professor of Classical Civilization Andrew Szegedy-Maszak. “He did so in a way that was impassioned, clear, and forceful without being self-righteous.”
College of Letters (COL) Chair Laurie Nussdorfer said the fact that Nuland is both a physician and writer puts him in a unique position.
“COL is also an interdisciplinary [study], but still it’s fascinating to see thoughts emerged from two different strands,” she said.
Leigh Senderowicz ’07 was impressed with Nuland’s assessment of the sciences.
“I found his assertion that science must be taken, like anything else, with a grain of salt as a product of the culture in which it exists really refreshing,” she said. “While this critique is very common within the social sciences, it is quite rare, in my experience, to hear a natural scientist admit the fallibility of his discipline.”
“His lecture has influenced me greatly on physicians’ responsibilities and wise decision-making choices [for] the patients’ well-being,” said Lilly Nguyen ’06.
The Philip Hallie Lecture is sponsored by the College of Letters and endowed by David Rhodes ’68. Former COL Professor Hallie interviewed Rhodes for his college admission and became the reason he came to Wesleyan.
“The actual name of the lecture was ‘Philip Hallie Lecture on Good and Evil,’” said Rhodes. “Professor Hallie knew and accepted [the lecture] before he died in 1993. Since then I’ve never skipped one lecture.”
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