The Pain Scale By Eula Biss - 1348 Words

What is the point in measuring something that is unique to every individual? In â€Å"The Pain Scale,† the author, Eula Biss, attempts to convey her pain to the reader. She tells the reader how she has tried to describe and measure her pain. There is a system set up for doing so, but it leaves much up to individual interpretation. The arbitrary process by which we are supposed to evaluate the level of pain we are experiencing doesn’t seem to accomplish much. Throughout the essay, Biss uses unique ways of comparing the suggested levels of pain to other â€Å"scales.† This raises the question, why can the scale, itself, doesn’t do adequate job of helping people understand pain. The Beaufort scale was developed by in 1805 by Sir Francis†¦show more content†¦In the century spanning Defoe and Beaufort’s scales, many others adapted and added measures that helped establish Beaufort’s definitive measure of winds. Temperature scales are also used in an attempt to make the concept of measuring pain more relatable. Across the world, temperature is measured in degrees Celsius. At zero, water freezes and, at one hundred, water boils. Despite Celsius being the global standard, the Fahrenheit scale was developed decades earlier. Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit based his temperature scale on two marks: on the lower end, the point where a mixture of salt and water would cease to exist as a liquid, and, on the upper end, a measure of normal body temperature. In an effort to add more confusion to the two standards, Lord Kelvin introduced the idea of an â€Å"absolute zero.† Absolute zero is the point where molecules and atoms are supposed to be essentially motionless. Despite this, research has showed that the motion doesn’t really stop. As Biss says, â€Å"†¦absolute is not absolute.† She finds that comforting, but not quite enough. Throughout Biss’ essay, she also attempts to equate the pain scale to something that seems much more insidious. To many, the thought of Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy brings about a reminder of the pain many suffered having to analyze the text in high school. Biss sees anShow MoreRelatedArts of the Contact Zone by Mary Louise Pratt999 Words   |  4 Pagesmain idea of an essay. â€Å"The Pain Scale†, written by Eula Biss, can be considered an example of an autoethnography that emerged out of a contact zone. In her essay, Biss discusses the pain scale used in hospitals today that rate pain on a level from zero to ten. Throughout her essay she argues that the pain scale is not a good method of measuring pain. Her rejection of the widely accepted system sets up a contact zone between two communities, those who accept the scale and those who don’t accept itRead MoreThe Experience of Pain1484 Words   |  6 PagesThere is a common tie that connects people around the world: the experience of pain. While many people experience pain differently, and experience pain relative to their own levels of tolerance, pain is a universal sensation, and, at times, a shared experience. While individual physical pain is isolated to one’s own body, empathy for the physical pain of others and the resulting emotional pain can be shared. Being empathetic and co nsiderate towards others not only brings people together, but alsoRead MoreThe Hippocratic Oath Of Hippocrates1774 Words   |  8 Pages which were symptoms and some elementary tests of patients such as blood testing. Nowadays, it is quite scary to imagine how doctors were managing to investigate conditions of their patients based on words and descriptions of something so vague as pain. Those detectives of human suffer were bounded by a common ideology and an oath. Although the Oath of Hippocrates has been criticized for some ideas such as its restriction of abortion, the medical society still considers the writing of a Greek thinker