logo

58 pages 1 hour read

Jean-Dominique Bauby

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 1997

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapter 7Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 7 Summary: “Tourists”

In this chapter, Bauby tells us that the Naval Hospital—which he interchangeably calls “Berck”—shifted its focus away from caring for children after World War II. He then breaks down the categories of patients that are housed by the hospital. In one section there are comatose patients “at death’s door” (31). Bauby states that the presence of these patients looms over the others, “almost like a guilty conscience” (31). There is also a wing for the elderly and one for obese patients. He then specifies that the bulk of the hospital’s patients are “survivors of sport, of the highway, and of every possible and imaginable kind of domestic accident” (32). Since these patients remain in Berck for temporary periods—until they have sufficiently recovered from their injuries—Bauby terms them “tourists.”

He then specifies that there are a few other patients like him—“broken-winged birds, voiceless parrots, ravens of doom, who have made [their] nest in a dead-end corridor of the neurology department” (32). He sardonically remarks that he and his compatriots spoil the view for others. He then paints a picture of the physical therapy room, in which “the tourists” are allowed to perform their exercises with minimal supervision, while he lies, prone, and tied to an inclined board that slowly raised to a vertical position.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 58 pages of this Study Guide
Plus, gain access to 8,550+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools