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Theodore H Schwartz

Neurosurgeon and Author, New York City

Theodore H Schwartz MD is a neurosurgeon and the author of the book Gray Matters: A Biography of Brain Surgery (Dutton and OneWorld, 2024). He lives in New York City.

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Written by Theodore H Schwartz

Photo of a patient in surgery with head stabilised by a frame; medical staff holding instruments in the background.

Freedom and choice

idea

What removing large chunks of brain taught me about selfhood

I’ve cut brains in half, excised tumours – even removed entire lobes. The illusion of the self and free will survives it all

by Theodore H Schwartz