THE ELEPHANT MAN (JOSEPH MERRICK): BIOGRAPHY, ILLNESS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The Elephant Man, whose real name was Joseph Merrick, was a citizen of English origin, famous for having been exhibited for the first time in a show in which he presented the severe facial and body deformities that he had, and that made him look like a phenomenon of nature.

Joseph Merrick suffered from a congenital medical condition that baffled medical experts of the time and terrified those who knew him in person. Due to his deformities, Merrick was unable to work in the everyday world like anyone else. His appearance and his difficulty in mobilizing and expressing limited him.

To earn his livelihood, and Joseph being aware of the impression he made on people, he decided to perform at traveling fairs, circuses and taverns in England.

He then adopted a name for his show that would capture the imagination of the audience. Thus was born the show "The Elephant Man" that brought him lasting fame to this day.

Although the name of the show evoked images of something wild and dangerous, those who knew Joseph Merrick, had a contrary opinion about him. Everyone was impressed by his gentleness and forgiving nature towards those around him (including his pursuers)

Among them was Dr. Frederick Treves, a London Hospital surgeon who protected and befriended him in his later years. In this sense, the doctor commented that Merrick's strong moral character and courage in the face of adversity had earned him his respect and admiration.

Biography of "The Elephant Man"

Birth and first days

Joseph Carey Merrick, The Elephant Man, was born on August 5, 1862, in Leicester, England. His parents were Mary Jane Potterton, a Sunday religion teacher, and the taxi driver Joseph Rockley Merrick. According to his biographers, the child Merrick was born in perfect health and without any visible deformation.

When the future elephant man was about twenty months old, the mother began to notice an imperfection in the child's appearance; she had a small swelling under her upper lip on the right side. The swelling got bigger and firmer over the days.

Over time, this deformity became of such proportions that it ended up pushing the baby's upper lip out. Progressively, her skin became thick and lumpy and a bony lump grew on her forehead.

Later, one of his arms and both of his feet began to enlarge. At some point during her childhood she fell and suffered damage to her hip, resulting in a permanent limp.

Childhood

His appearance made it difficult for him to mix with other children to play. His mother did her best to make his life as close to normal as possible, sending him daily to a public school to socialize with other children.

However, his deformities attracted the attention of his classmates. At that time, the Merrick boy had a bony lump growing on his forehead, his spine was twisting in a spiral, and he walked with a limp. The teasing and bullying of which he was a victim turned him into an introverted, lonely and dependent child.

Between 1865 and 1868, various events changed his life. First, his father got a promotion at work and the family was able to move into a more spacious home. The other was the arrival of two more members of his family: his brothers William Arthur and Marion Eliza. The last one was that his father became the owner of a haberdashery store.

In that store, Merrick spent much of his childhood helping his mother. Since the father was busy with his work, the mother was the one who ran the store. Joseph took care of small things such as sorting merchandise, putting props on display, and taking care of his brothers when customers were shopping.

Adolescence

On May 19, 1873 his mother died of bronchial pneumonia. By that time, Merrick was eleven years old and the loss of his mother was one of the greatest sorrows of his life.

On the other hand, the widower Joseph Rockley Merrick now faced various difficulties. He had been left alone to tend to his children and had to combine this with his job duties. He also had to take into account that he needed to keep the haberdashery store open.

In the end, the solution Rockey found was to move his children into rented rooms on the same street where they lived. The landlady was a young widow with children of her own named Emma Wood Antill. Merrick Sr.'s children were also entrusted to his care.

Then on December 3, 1874, Joseph Rockley Merrick and Emma Wood Antill were married. For the young Merrick, his father's new relationship meant more trouble. Disabled by his condition and his injured hip, he now found himself living in competition with stepbrothers and stepsisters.

In her own words, her stepmother made her life "a perfect misery." This led to countless escapades from home that ended with the father bringing him back. Thus, under this overwhelming situation, Joseph Merrick finished his twelfth year of school and left it to look for work and help with the family budget.

Laboral life

After abandoning his studies, and after a long search, Joseph found a job in a cigar factory. He worked there for two years, but when his right hand started to get awkward and uncomfortable, Joseph lost his job and hit the streets again.

Wanting to help his son, Rockley Merrick got him a street vendor license. Equipped with a tray of stockings and gloves (from his father's store), he set about selling merchandise from door to door.

Far from being a solution, this was a new source of humiliation for Joseph. The progressive increase in his deformities made his sales pitch practically incomprehensible to outsiders.

With each passing day it became more difficult for him to meet the sales quota assigned by his father. One day he could not meet the quota and was savagely beaten by it. Joseph left his house never to return and stayed on the streets selling what he could, eating badly and sleeping in very bad looking places. His father never came looking for him to bring him home.

Life in the asylum

Merrick had to request refuge in a homeless asylum forced by the impossibility of obtaining daily sustenance due to the advance of his deformity. They admitted him and mixed him with other disabled people.

After twelve weeks in the asylum, he withdrew to try to find a new job on the street, although his appearance and limitations made it impossible for him to fulfill his wishes. He was left with no alternative but to return to the asylum and request to be readmitted. This time he would spend four years there.

In the course of those years, Joseph kept searching for a way to provide himself with daily sustenance in a dignified way. This opportunity presented itself to him on August 29, 1884, when he joined Mr. Sam Torr, an artistic agent who presented a show that he himself classified as "human novelties."

So that day, at 22 years old and hoping to earn a living by exhibiting across the country, she left the asylum and started a new life. That day old Joseph Carey Merrick died and The Elephant Man was born.

The elephant Man

It is presumed that the name The Elephant Man was suggested by himself, recalling a story told by his mother. According to this account, Merrick's physical deformity was due to a fright suffered by her during her pregnancy. This strong impression would have been produced by a parade of elephants in a circus.

In the months that followed, the Torr and Merrick partnership produced considerable profits. For the first time in his life, Joseph was able to sustain himself sufficiently and even generate savings. Other than that, his relationship with the other workers in the entertainment company was one of consideration and respect.

As a show expert, Sam Torr knew that the show designed for Merrick was in danger of boring the audience if it stayed in one place for too long. So he got in touch with other producers and came up with a rotation plan. According to this plan, the show would travel the country, spending a short time at each site.

The plan was a success; initial reactions to the show were horror. However, after the prepared dialogues, the audience showed compassion and solidarity. Despite the success, the shows began to be closed by the police in the different cities where it was presented.

Friendship with Frederick Treves

In the heyday of Merrick's show, his case began to gain the attention of the medical community. The show was especially attended by medical students, who were always asking multiple questions.

In particular, Dr Frederick Treves from London Hospital attended the show several times and was able to have an interview with Joseph. Treves managed to get Merrick to attend the hospital for board medical examinations.

Thus, on December 2, 1884, a group of physicians from the Pathological Society led by Dr. Treves examined the elephant man. Detailed measurements of his body and some photographs were taken in the course of the examination.

Treves' colleagues were surprised by Merrick's condition, but none were able to offer a useful diagnosis. One of the first theories was elephantiasis. However, it was immediately dismissed because Merrick was not showing all the symptoms.

After this visit, Joseph lost all hope of a cure. However, Dr. Trever continued to visit him and eventually became one of his closest friends. He was very aware of The Elephant Man and assisted him during his last days of life.

Twilight and death

As shows in England closed, Joseph Merrick and his allied art agents began to explore possibilities outside the country. In the year 1885, he signed a contract to make presentations in various European countries starting in Belgium. In this country, the show was also closed by the police.

On the other hand, he discovered that the agent in charge of his tour had escaped with all the money from the show (including his savings). From that moment, without having anywhere to go, he tried with great effort to return to England, which he achieved on June 24, 1886, the date on which he arrived in Liverpool bankrupt, homeless and with his condition aggravated.

Upon his arrival, he received help from the London Hospital, which accepted him and gave him room, food and medical care. Subsequently, a fundraiser was made that allowed him to remain under the care of the hospital.

For the next four years, Merrick stayed in the hospital. During that time his condition continued to deteriorate. His deformities increased making it very difficult for him to stand. On April 11, 1890, at the age of 27, he died of suffocation.

Disease

After Joseph Merrick's death, doctors concluded that his condition was Proteus Syndrome, a rare condition characterized by overgrowth of bones, skin, and other tissues. The organs and tissues affected by the disease grew out of proportion to the rest of the body.

This overgrowth is usually asymmetrical, meaning it affects the left and right sides of the body differently. Newborns with Proteus syndrome have few or no signs of the condition. Growth becomes apparent between the ages of 6 and 18 months, and becomes more severe with age.

The pattern of overgrowth varies greatly from person to person, but it can affect almost any part of the body. The bones in the extremities, skull, and spine are often affected. The condition can also cause a variety of skin growths, particularly a thick, raised, deeply grooved lesion.

Some people with Proteus syndrome have neurological abnormalities including intellectual disability, seizures, and loss of vision. They may also have distinctive facial features such as a long face, a low nasal bridge with wide nostrils, and an open-mouthed expression.

Incidence

This syndrome is a rare condition with an incidence of less than one in a million people worldwide. Currently, there are only a few hundred affected people who have been reported in the medical literature. In the opinion of researchers, the syndrome may even be overdiagnosed.

References

1. National Human Genome Research Institute. (2013, August 26). Biography of Joseph Carey Merrick (1862-1890). Taken from genome.gov.
2. Sitton, J. and Siu-Wai Stroshane, M. (2015). Measured by Soul: The Life of Joseph Carey Merrick (also known as 'The Elephant Man'). London: Friends of Joseph Carey Merrick.
3. Ford, P. and Howell, M. (2010). The True History of the Elephant Man. New York: Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.
4. Treves, F. (1923). The Elephant Man and Other Reminiscences. London: Cassel and company LTD.
5. US National Library of Medicine. (2018, July 10). Proteus syndrome. Taken from ghr.nlm.nih.gov.