The anatomy of a great title
 by Sonia Houston, Ph.D.

One of the hottest shows on television is Grey’s
anatomy. The title Grey’s anatomy spelled G-R-E-Y is
an allusion of Gray’s (spelled G-R-A-Y) anatomy’s, the
famous medical textbook. An allusion is an indirect
literary reference. The textbook Gray’s anatomy is a
classic medical textbook of black-and-white drawings
of the human body. The human body is dissected and
described in exquisite detail throughout the text.
Henry Gray, the original author and anatomist died
three years after the publication of this pivotal
work. His name continues to be used for the title of
subsequent textbooks and is still being published in
various forms today. ABC’s show Grey’s Anatomy is a truly ingenious title
for the show. Grey’s anatomy is a detailed dissection
of the life of Meredith Grey, a surgical resident at
Seattle Grace Hospital. Grey’s anatomy is a dissection
or detailed examination of her life as a surgical
intern, friend, and a daughter (or step-daughter). The
medical term anatomy is defined by Dorland’s online
medical dictionary is the science of the structure of
the body and the relation of its parts; it is largely
based on dissection, from which it obtains its name.
Let’s break up the word, ANATOMY into its parts. The
beginning of the word is ana-

ana-

is Latin in its origin. It means away from or without

(a-,an- can also mean away from or without)

tome is derived from Greek word that means cutting.
When we drop the -e and add y to the T-O-M, this
changes the term to tomy which means the action or
process of cutting.

Putting the terms together we create the medical word,
anatomy, which means “cutting away or dissection”.

Now the lovers of Grey’s anatomy and you the reader
can see that it is not only a great show but a great
title as well. Kudos to Shonda Rhimes and her writers
for being so clever.

YOUR THOUGHT QUESTION FOR NEXT TIME:

Should cirrhosis or sclerosis fill in the blank

__________________________________ is the disease that
degrades liver function that results in a deficiency
of clotting factors.

Until next time,

Take some medical advice and learn a new medical word.

Dr. Sonia Houston can be reached at
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