1 - A Fascination with Disorderly Movements

Summary

Abstract: Anne Young grew up in Winnetka, Illinois. Like Pippi Longstocking, she was a rambunctious child who defied her mother’s expectations to be her doll. Anne experimented, explored, climbed trees and played in the mud with the boys. She did not get the attention she needed from her parents and, as a result, dealt with a lot of anger, which manifested physically, sometimes throwing herself down the stairs for attention. Anne did not feel like the typical girl. Many of her friends in elementary school were boys. At an early age, Anne was exposed to illness through her aunt, who was paralyzed from the waist down, and her mother, who developed polio when Anne was four. These determined her fascination with disorderly movements. From elementary into high school, Anne excelled at sports such as basketball. Her main interests were art and science. After visiting the University of Chicago School of Medicine to see a demonstration of immunity in mice, she thought she would never become a doctor because she fainted dead away at the sight of a large needle. However, she continued to involve herself in medical-related opportunities, such as volunteering at the Chicago State Mental Hospital, where she entertained patients locked in the male ward.