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The true story ofthe Elephant Man reveals a profound lesson about the incredible human potencial.
W
hat is the measure of
man ? What makes a
person uniquely hu–
man ? What is the
most impor tant human quality?
T hese questions are raised by
the widespread interest in the sto–
ry of Joseph Merrick, the " Eie–
phant Man " of Victorian En–
gland . At one point Merrick was
one of the most physically repul–
sive, loathsome men ever to wa1k
on earth-forced to exhibit him–
self in a freak show on White–
chapel Road in London.
But Merrick also eventuall y
became the d arling of London
high society, a person renowned
for his intelligence, gentleness
and humility. His life story is so
movi ng that it has become the
subject of at least two books, a
34
by
Jetf
Calkins
Broadway play, and a popular
movie.
*
As newspaper columnist
George Will has remarked, Mer–
rick has come a long way since
Whitechapel Road.
Merrick's story, and our natural
interest in it, tells us much about the
dignity and grandeur of the ulti–
mate human destiny. It does so
because it tells us about human
character. l t also reveals why God's
way of giving brings good results.
• The authoritative source on the life of Joseph
Merrick is
The True History of The Elephant
Man
by Michael Howell and Petcr Ford. Pen–
guin Books. 1980. which includes both the
Elephant Man 's own autobiography and the
memoirs of Frederic Treves. the physician in
London Hospital who brought him to promi–
nence.
lt
provided the biographical source
material for this artiele. The movie and the
play depart from the true s tory in a number of
instances.
Most of what we know abou t
Joseph:t: Merrick comes from
Frede ric T reves, a surgeon at
L ondon Hospital, who rescued
him from his nightmarish exis–
tence.
When Treves first saw Mer–
rick, the Elephant Man was being
exhibited in a small shop across
the street from the hospital in a
one-man freak show. Treves had
been made curious by a poster
advertising a c reature who was
half-man, half-elephant.
1t was a dark and bare room.
The curtain was d rawn. On a
stool sat Joseph Merrick, small
and frail, with a blanket covering
*The Elcphant Man's real namc was Joseph.
Treves had a mental block ovcr the name and
always called the Elephant Man "John. " an
error repeated by other writers.
The
PLAIN TRUTH