The first is the courage to confront the reality of mortality—the courage to seek out the truth of what is to be feared and what is to be hoped. Gawande uses his grandfather in India and his girlfriend’s (now wife’s) grandmother to compare the Westernized way of caring for the elderly vs. the rest of the world. “Being Mortal” by Atul Gawande is an accounting of the care and treatment of the elderly and the dying as it has evolved over the last century to what it is today and could become in the future. And the way we deal with old age must also evolve. With doctors as parents and his grandparents living in another country, Atul Gawande wasn’t exposed to old age or age-related illnesses until he was introduced to his girlfriend’s grandmother. The Independent Self. Being Mortal by Atul Gawande [Book Summary – Review] Written by Savaş Ateş in Nonfiction In the light of statements that generally accepted to be true and not necessary to prove, which are called axiom, only there are obligatory two things found in life and these are; death and taxes. Background Edgar Lerma, [EL] Chicago nephrologist and father of #NephPearls worked with Joel on this summary of the second exciting chapter of Being Mortal. The story Being Mortal was written by Atul Gawande. It is an account of the treatment and care provided to the elderly. MicroSummary: Despite advances in the fields of medicine and technology, death and aging continue to be inevitable for all human beings. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Gawande states: at least two kinds of courage are required in aging and sickness. Economic development, life expectancy, and shifting changes towards independence have all shaped how we now deal with providing for the elderly. Quote: “… Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “Being Mortal: Illness, Medicine and what Matters in the End” by Atul Gawande. In the first chapter of his book, Being Mortal – Medicine and What Matters in the End, Atul Gawande begins by introducing the … Atul Gawande explores his view of aging in his book Being Mortal and leads the reader to reflect on how we view this phase of life. In Western culture, there are taboos against death because it fits neither into post-Enlightenment notions of progress and perfection nor into medical notions of control, even domination of human biology. Summary Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal is both ambitious and synthetic, qualities that well suit his difficult subject, death. She wrote the first of our eight (fingers crossed) chapter summaries of Atul Gawande's Being Mortal.. Chapter one. Chapter Two: THINGS FALL APART Chapter Two looks at how life and death have changed with modernity. Suzanne Norby is a nephrologist and fellowship program director at the Mayo Clinic and recently joined the NephJC advisory board.