Part One: Chapter Five, Hands Summary and Analysis

Sixty year old Madeleine J. is admitted to St. Benedict's Hospital where Dr. Sacks works. She is congenitally blind and suffers from cerebral palsy. Madeleine has never been able to live on her own and has been looked after by her family for her entire life. However, she is as smart as a whip and retains all her sensory capabilities. Her biggest complaint is that her hands are useless "lumps of dough."

Dr. Sacks is unable to understand the cause for Madeleine's affliction. She is able to sense touch and pain but unable to integrate sensation and mobility in her hands. All the necessary components are there for her hands to function properly but still they do not. Taking a cue from Goethe, Sacks decides he must first stimulate an impulse in Madeleine...