In Leslie Jamison’s “Devil’s Bait,” the reader follows the narrator’s experiences at a conference for those suffering from Morgellons disease. Morgellons disease, as the reader discovers, is the feeling that something is under a victim’s skin that will not come out. This is then accompanied by the disbelief of doctors and friends, as well as the constant devotion to finding a cure or looking to prove that this is not their imagination, that there is something under their skin and the doctors are wrong. Although doctor’s see nothing wrong with the victims, Morgellons takes a physical toll on the victim, as their itching leads to scabs and scars and red raw skin.  However, Morgellons is not a disease where a worm, thread, or other bothersome thing is actually lodged under the skin. Instead, the victim believes so strongly that something is there that it causes an almost endless loop of finding “evidence” and searching for more.

While the source of their suffering is not real, it is clear that they are still suffering. They feel unable to connect and fit in with the rest of the world, a place where people do not believe them or worry that they will contract the illness as well. Victims spend hours upon hours analyzing themselves, searching for proof of their condition, which then leads to physical deterioration and decreased mental stability. They begin to worry that people think they are crazy, even though they truly believe that something is physically located under their skin, causing them to itch. Only at this convention do those with Morgellons feel accepted and are willing to share their experiences. It is in this positive, inviting environment that the narrator hears the stories of the people there, each with the same thread of suffering from a problem that isn’t actually there.

This raises the question, can one empathize with someone when they know that what the other is suffering from does not have a real source? Here, the people with Morgellons believe they are suffering from something under their skin that does not exist, but does that mean we cannot empathize with their suffering? This can be applied to a much broader population of people who are clearly suffering, but the source cannot be found, or is deemed not real, causing one to find out how, and to what extent empathy can be felt for them.

Works Cited

Jamison, Leslie. “Devil’s Bait.” The Empathy Exams, pp. 27-56.