Towards a Better Understanding of Alcoholism (1943)
Towards a Better Understanding of Alcoholism (1943)
Author: Merrill Moore, Major, Medical Corps, A.U.S.
Publisher: Reprinted from The New Zealand Medical Journal, Supplementary Issue — Auckland Postgraduate Conference, April 1943
Format: Staple-bound pamphlet
Pages: 8
Location: Wellington, New Zealand
Year: 1943
Condition
Good+ overall for a WWII-era medical pamphlet. Covers show age toning, edge wear, and a few creases. Some small tears at the fold, oxidation at staple binding, and light handling wear. Interior pages clean and fully legible. A solid, well-preserved example of a scarce wartime alcoholism study.
Description
Towards a Better Understanding of Alcoholism (1943) is an important early medical examination of alcoholism by Merrill Moore, an Australian-born physician, psychiatrist, and prolific poet. This pamphlet is a reprint of Moore’s paper presented at the Auckland Postgraduate Conference, April 1943, under the auspices of the British Medical Association (Auckland Division).
In this work, Moore explores the nature of alcoholism at a time when the medical community was only beginning to shift away from moralistic interpretations of drinking behavior. Drawing on clinical observation and emerging psychiatric perspectives, he discusses the symptoms, causes, tolerance variations, environmental and hereditary factors, personality traits, childhood origins, and medical management of alcoholism.
Moore was known for his pioneering interest in psychiatric approaches to alcoholism and addiction, and his work contributed to the broader mid-20th-century movement toward recognizing alcoholism as a medical condition rather than a moral failing.
This 1943 New Zealand reprint is scarce, especially in complete condition. It offers a fascinating window into wartime medical thinking and the early evolution of modern alcohol studies.
Rarity / Collectibility
Original 1943 New Zealand conference reprints are quite scarce, especially in complete condition. Moore’s writings on alcoholism are actively collected due to his historical role in shaping early medical models of addiction.
