The Two-Edged Sword (Paperback)

by William H. Hampton (Author), Virginia Burnham (Author) "What is paranoia? It is a personality trait common to all living things-from plants to insects to human beings..." (more)
Key Phrases: excessive paranoia, high paranoia, paranoid element, United States, Paranoids In Government, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
What did Indira Gandhi, Josef Stalin and Winston Churchill have in common? The answer: paranoia. Oh, too bad, you say. But is paranoia all that bad? Not at all, if it is under control, say our authors. Paranoia is a much misunderstood word and a characteristic we all share. It actually is a valuable and necessary part of our personality--part of the drive toward self-preservation. Paranoid thinking galvanizes, stimulates and fuels our competitive natures and gives all of us, as well as our leaders, motivation and guidance. Since we all have paranoia, we need to know exactly what it is and what it does to us and those around us. But too much or too little affects you adversely. Just read about some of the case studies! The authors hope you will use this book to develop your self knowledge and self control. Then you will be in tune with yourself.

About the Author
Dr. William H. Hampton graduated from Syracuse Medical School and took a psychiatric residency at Syracuse Veterans Administration Hospital and at New York Hospital in White Plains, New York. He then entered private practice in Greenwich, Connecticut and assumed the directorship of the Greenwich Hospital's Psychiatric Clinic. He has participated in the Association for Alcohol and Addictions, the International Geriatric Society and many other profession associations relating to mental health.

Virginia Schroeder Burnham served as a consultant in medical research to the Federal Government for the Senate, the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration. She developed several proprietorships dealing with inventions and medical instrumentation and served for many years of the board of Gaylord Rehabilitation Hospital. Her extensive volunteer activities culminated in her being knighted a Dame of Malta.

Product Details

• Paperback: 148 pages
• Publisher: Sunstone Press (March 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0865341478
• ISBN-13: 978-0865341470
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #958,437 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars One Edge May Be Sharper Than Another, November 9, 2006

By	D. J. Moore "charliesgirl" (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

My feelings about this book are decidedly ambivalent, but the split in my opinions seems apt, given the title and the subject matter.
The original reason for ordering the book was to try to gain some insight about Paranoid Personality Disorder, a condition that I believed affected a close friend. On the positive side, the book fulfilled that goal; the descriptions of the behaviors, personality traits, and emotional patterns typical of the disorder were vivid and expressive. The language was "jargon-free" and readable. A short passage on female paranoids was particularly impressive.
On the negative side, the operant word may be "short." The best information fills only about the first 40 or so pages, and the remaining two-thirds of the text is devoted to describing the paranoid traits of famous figures in history (JP Morgan, Huey P. Long, J Edgar Hoover, Hitler, etc.) used as examples to support the thesis that paranoia has a "positive side," in terms of accomplishments, although the cast of characters doesn't have THAT many redeeming qualities....
Was the book worth the price? Yes, clearly it gave me some information that was enlightening. I just wish the last 100 pages had held as much value as the first 40--as it is, those last pages have all the uselfulness of styrofoam packing peanuts.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Some interesting info but disappointing, August 21, 2007

By	Waterlily (Vancouver, BC, Canada) - See all my reviews

The beginning of the book has some interesting concepts which are unfortunately underdeveloped in the book. The focus seems to be on highly paranoid individuals, their symptoms, and examples of them. The later part of the book merely rattles off stories of notable people without fully discussing the paranoid features. Additionally, the typos and writing style lead me to think that there was little care put forth in producing this book.

I bought this book for the purposes of finding out more about paranoia because some people close to me are sufferers. This book did not help me in my quest for more insightful information.

6 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars History of some famous people, November 21, 2003

By	Roman Friedman "Your Friend" (NY,NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It is amazing, that nobody from medical community reviewed
this book! It is written with the only one goal in mind-Make some money! He tells short stories of some very famous peoples like Stalin, Hitler, Indira Gandhi Nero,John Hoover,etc.
He labeled them ALL PARANOIDS without seeing their med. histories- just because he believed it. The guy graduated from the 3-rd class college and works for the 3-rd class hospital.
I hope his student post the review in his class.
This is a joke, Freid would be turning in his grave to know
who is trying to to analisis nowdays!