Re:visit. Humanities & Medicine in Dialogue (Journal)
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Autie-Ethnography and Epistemic Injustice: A Contribution to the Reflection on Experience-Based Research in the Critical Medical Humanities
No full textBased on exemplary autistic ethnographies and discussions about autistic live writing, the article examines the potential of auto-ethnographic research by Autistics in the context of Critical Medical Humanities. A key argument is that autistic ethnographies emerge in an academic context that is characterised by epistemic injustice in the sense of Miranda Fricker which affects autistic people to a great extent. How far autie-ethnographies can represent a possible response to this finding is discussed primarily on the basis of Remi Yergeau\u27s and Monique Botha\u27s autoethnographic works.Based on exemplary autistic ethnographies and discussions about autistic live writing, the article examines the potential of auto-ethnographic research by Autistics in the context of Critical Medical Humanities. A key argument is that autistic ethnographies emerge in an academic context that is characterised by epistemic injustice in the sense of Miranda Fricker which affects autistic people to a great extent. How far autie-ethnographies can represent a possible response to this finding is discussed primarily on the basis of Remi Yergeau\u27s and Monique Botha\u27s autoethnographic works
"Healthy People Are People Who Just Not Realise How Sick They Are": Centenary of "Knock, or the Triumph of Medicine" by Jules Romains
No full textGesundheitsängste spielen in der Hierarchie der Ängste in unserer Gesellschaft eine große Rolle. Ärztliche Behandlung und Rat kann sie oft mehr schüren als abmildern. Das Theaterstück Jules Romains Knock oder der Triumph der Medizin (1923) hat nach 100 Jahren nichts von seiner Aktualität verloren und wirft ein Schlaglicht auf die Stellung der Medizin in der Gesellschaft zwischen Zuwendung und Hilfe, Aufklärung und Gesundheitserziehung, und dem Geschäft, nicht zuletzt mit der Angst. Die heutige Auseinandersetzung mit „Knock“ hilft, die Intentionen der Gesundheitswirtschaft zu enttarnen und den Stellenwert dieser Art von Gesundheitsvorstellungen zu relativieren, denn Gesundheit ist kein Selbstzweck, dem sich die ganze Gesellschafts- und Persönlichkeitsentfaltung unterzuordnen hat.Health anxieties play a major role in the hierarchy of today’s anxieties. Medical treatment and advice frequently fuel them more than alleviate them. Jules Romains\u27 theatre play Knock, or the Triumph of Medicine (1923) has lost none of its topicality 100 years on and sheds light on the position of medicine in society between care and help, awareness and health education, and the business, not least with anxieties. Dealing with Knock today helps to expose the intentions of the health industry and to put into perspective the significance of this type of health concept, because health is not an end in itself to which the entire development of society and personality must be subordinated
Hacking the Disease: Salvatore Iaconesi’s Sense-Making Quest for an Open-Source Cure for Cancer
Full text linkThe experience of illness, as narrated by those who suffer from it, can provide significant insight for medical and health professionals, helping them to understand what their patient is going through, from a psychological and existential point of view. These narratives can also help to bridge the distance between science and experience, and to heal the gap that divides the sick person from the rest of society. The work that Salvatore Iaconesi and Oriana Persico have done with their performance La cura (The cure) – started when he was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2012 – takes this kind of narrative and selfreflexive experience even further, in order to explore the relationship between culture, technology and biology, with the aim of redefining the meaning of cure (and, consequently, of illness and health) in a collective and inclusive way. La cura can thus be seen as a piece of work that, by belonging to the Medical Humanities, can also take a step forward in building a theoretical and practical dialogue between different disciplines in order to respond to the challenges of our digital (and biotechnological) society.The experience of illness, as narrated by those who suffer from it, can provide significant insight for medical and health professionals, helping them to understand what their patient is going through, from a psychological and existential point of view. These narratives can also help to bridge the distance between science and experience, and to heal the gap that divides the sick person from the rest of society. The work that Salvatore Iaconesi and Oriana Persico have done with their performance La cura (The cure) – started when he was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2012 – takes this kind of narrative and selfreflexive experience even further, in order to explore the relationship between culture, technology and biology, with the aim of redefining the meaning of cure (and, consequently, of illness and health) in a collective and inclusive way. La cura can thus be seen as a piece of work that, by belonging to the Medical Humanities, can also take a step forward in building a theoretical and practical dialogue between different disciplines in order to respond to the challenges of our digital (and biotechnological) society
Uplifting Corona Fictions: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Representations Encouraging Well-Being in Music Videos
Full text linkThe Covid-19 pandemic continuously affects people around the world, exposing the already existing social interconnectedness and economic interdependencies of our times. Revisiting pandemic fiction, as well as crises narratives in literature and other cultural productions in general, has suddenly become a coping strategy to counteract the effects of physical distancing, but in particular the experiences of lockdowns. Interestingly, since the early stages of the pandemic in the Western world in spring 2020, numerous artists have not only dissected the reality of confinement across diverse genres but more so provided the public with uplifting content in various audiovisual formats – such as short films, web series, and music videos. Although anglophone music videos are more broadly known, many culture specific uplifting narratives emerged also in Romance languages. Research results from psychology, social sciences and musicology all suggest that in times of crises listening to music, watching music videos and music-making have great potential as coping strategies and tools for mood regulation, significantly contributing to well-being. In this article, we analyze from an interdisciplinary cultural, film, and media studies perspective how three music videos in Romance languages (No tengas miedo by El Canijo de Jerez, Ya pasará by Carlos Rivera, and Andrà tutto bene by Jack Savoretti) encode the uplifting storytelling, portraying the human need for connection, on a narratological macro (fictional arc) and micro level (textual and audiovisual cues). Across national, cultural, and linguistic borders, these Corona Fictions demonstrate how fragile our social fabric is while, at the same time, strengthening the feeling of solidarity, togetherness/ unity, and cohesion in their representations and approach to the Covid-19 pandemic. With this contribution, we intend to enrich the existing research from the intersections of psychology, social sciences and musicology with a specific cultural and media studies perspective beyond cultural products in English.The Covid-19 pandemic continuously affects people around the world, exposing the already existing social interconnectedness and economic interdependencies of our times. Revisiting pandemic fiction, as well as crises narratives in literature and other cultural productions in general, has suddenly become a coping strategy to counteract the effects of physical distancing, but in particular the experiences of lockdowns. Interestingly, since the early stages of the pandemic in the Western world in spring 2020, numerous artists have not only dissected the reality of confinement across diverse genres but more so provided the public with uplifting content in various audiovisual formats – such as short films, web series, and music videos. Although anglophone music videos are more broadly known, many culture specific uplifting narratives emerged also in Romance languages. Research results from psychology, social sciences and musicology all suggest that in times of crises listening to music, watching music videos and music-making have great potential as coping strategies and tools for mood regulation, significantly contributing to well-being. In this article, we analyze from an interdisciplinary cultural, film, and media studies perspective how three music videos in Romance languages (No tengas miedo by El Canijo de Jerez, Ya pasará by Carlos Rivera, and Andrà tutto bene by Jack Savoretti) encode the uplifting storytelling, portraying the human need for connection, on a narratological macro (fictional arc) and micro level (textual and audiovisual cues). Across national, cultural, and linguistic borders, these Corona Fictions demonstrate how fragile our social fabric is while, at the same time, strengthening the feeling of solidarity, togetherness/ unity, and cohesion in their representations and approach to the Covid-19 pandemic. With this contribution, we intend to enrich the existing research from the intersections of psychology, social sciences and musicology with a specific cultural and media studies perspective beyond cultural products in English
Understanding Psychiatric Care in the FRG and GDR: A Case for a Mixed-Methods Approach
No full textAgainst the backdrop of far-reaching societal change in the 1960s-1980s, reforms in psychiatry took place in both the FRG and GDR. The process was more pervasive in the FRG, more partial and local in the GDR. There is consensus regarding the existence of interactions between the social systems of society and psychiatry, with a clear impact of scientific, cultural and societal developments on the theory and practice of psychiatry. The nature of German cross-border interactions between society and psychiatry has received little attention. It is not clear whether and how contemporary witness narratives (from the fields of psychiatry and wider society) differ across the inter-German border and what role German-German interactions play in either context. This manuscript argues for an interdisciplinary approach: Qualitative content analysis of witness interviews with people from the fields of psychiatry and (non-psychiatric) society uses oral history methods with the potential to identify emotion-historical aspects. The use of discourse analysis and discourse theory in dealing with oral history transcripts could detect and contextualize power effects and narrative themes. The interdisciplinary use of sociological and historiographical methods aims to strengthen German-German psychiatric history research.Vor dem Hintergrund gesellschaftlich-politischer Veränderungen in den 1960er-1980er Jahren vollzogen sich Reformen in der Psychiatrie in der BRD und in der DDR. Dies geschah unterschiedlich, eher pervasiv in der BRD, eher punktuell in der DDR. Während Konsens besteht, dass es Interaktionen zwischen Psychiatrie und Gesellschaft gibt und gesellschaftliche Entwicklungen für die Psychiatrie relevant sind, bleibt die Frage nach Art und Weise der (grenzüberschreitenden) Wechselwirkungen zwischen Gesellschaft einerseits und Theorie wie Praxis der Psychiatrie andererseits unbeantwortet. Unterschiede der Interaktionen in DDR und BRD könnten fruchtbar sein, Wechselwirkungen zu verstehen. Die vorliegende Arbeit plädiert für einen fächerübergreifenden Arbeitsansatz, der im vorliegenden Text exemplarisch beschrieben wird: Anhand qualitativer Inhaltsanalysen von Zeitzeug*innen-Interviews mit Menschen aus dem Bereich Psychiatrie und der psychiatriefernen Gesellschaft können thematische Foci identifiziert und emotionshistorische Aspekte sichtbar gemacht werden. Diskursanalytische und diskurstheoretische Ansätze können Hinweise auf Machteffekte und wiederkehrende Sprechweisen im Erinnern der Zeitzeug*innen erschließen. Das Vorhaben zielt darauf, diskursive Strukturen in Erinnerungskulturen Ost- und Westdeutschlands im Spannungsfeld von Psychiatrie und Gesellschaft zu identifizieren und Reflektionsräume zu eröffnen
In conversation with … Pavla Schäfer
No full textAfter completing her master’s degree in German Studies and History at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic, and earning her doctorate in German Linguistics (Joint Ph.D. Greifswald and Brno), Dr. Pavla Schäfer initially worked at the University of Greifswald (2012–2019), followed by a position in German Linguistics at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg (2019–2020). After her parental leave, Dr. Schäfer returned to Greifswald. Since 2022, she has been employed as a research associate and habilitation candidate at the Institute of German Philology, where she also leads the Greifswald Network for Medical Humanities. Her current research focuses on linguistic trust studies and medical communication, which also ties into her habilitation project funded by the DFG, titled "Textbooks and Thought Styles." In this project, she examines patterns of language use in textbooks on internal medicine and homeopathy from a linguistic perspective.
As part of the thematic issue on medicine and media discourses, Pavla Schäfer outlines the development, current state, and future visions of the Greifswald Network for Medical Humanities. The interview was conducted by linguist Dr. Marina Iakushevich, currently a research associate at the Greifswald Department of German Linguistics, co-director of the Linguistics and Medicine Network, and guest editor of the thematic issue.Nach ihrem Magisterstudium in Germanistik und Geschichte an der Masaryk-Universität in Brno, Tschechien, und der Promotion in Germanistischer Sprachwissenschaft (Joint Ph.D. Greifwald und Brno) war Dr. Pavla Schäfer zunächst an der Universität Greifswald (2012–2019), sodann an der Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg (2019–2020) in der Germanistischen Sprachwissenschaft tätig. Nach ihrer Elternzeit kehrte Dr. Schäfer nach Greifswald zurück. Seit 2022 ist sie als wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin und Habilitandin am Institut für Deutsche Philologie beschäftigt und leitet das Greifswalder Netzwerk Medical Humanities. Ihre aktuelle Forschung konzentriert sich auf linguistische Vertrauensforschung und medizinische Kommunikation. Hieran schließt auch ihr durch die DFG gefördertes Habilitationsprojekt mit dem Kurztitel „Lehrbücher und Denkstile“ an, in welchem sie aus linguistischer Perspektive Sprachgebrauchsmuster in Lehrbüchern zur Inneren Medizin und Homöopathie untersucht. Im Rahmen des Themenheftes zu Medizin und Mediendiskursen skizziert Pavla Schäfer die Entstehung, den aktuellen Stand und Visionen des Greifswalder Netzwerks Medical Humanities.
Das Gespräch wurde geführt von der Linguistin Dr. Marina Iakushevich, derzeit wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin am Greifswalder Arbeitsbereich Germanistische Sprachwissenschaft, Co-Leiterin des Netzwerks Linguistik und Medizin und Gastherausgeberin des Themenheftes
Editorial
Full text linkMit drei Originalbeiträgen, einem Bericht und einem Interview lädt die diesjährige offene Sektion zu einer weiteren Beschäftigung mit dem komplexen Feld der Medical Humanities ein. With three original contributions, a report, and an interview, this year\u27s open section invites further engagement with the complex field of the Medical Humanities
Im Gespräch mit ... Veronika Siegl
Full text linkIn conversation with Gabriele Werner-Felmayer, the social anthropologist and gender researcher Veronika Siegl (Vienna) provides insight into her postdoctoral project, in which she examines issues of inequality and self-determination in reproductive medicine. Siegl explains how the controversial practice of commercial surrogacy can be understood as a form of "ethical labor." The conversation is based on Siegl\u27s 2023 published monograph Intimate Strangers (Cornell UP).In Konversation mit Gabriele Werner-Felmayer gibt die Sozialanthropologin und Geschlechterforscherin Veronika Siegl (Wien) Einblick in ihr Postdoc-Projekt, in welchem sie Fragen von Ungleichheit und Selbstbestimmung in der Reproduktionsmedizin untersucht. Dabei erläutert Siegl, inwiefern die umstrittene Praxis kommerzieller Leihmutterschaft als Form "ethischer Arbeit" verstanden werden kann. Das Gespräch stützt sich auf Siegls 2023 publizierte Monographie Intimate Strangers (Cornell UP)
Multimodal Technics of Self-Presentation in Social Media: Depression on Instagram
No full textThis paper discusses the multimodal technics of self-presentation of people with depression on Instagram. On Instagram, people share their individual experiences with depression, in order to interact with others, to search for help and to offer help and hope. In the social media, under condition of interactive, networked forms of communication, participants tell their stories about depression. So, this paper investigates the narrative structure of single small stories. Further, it focuses the polylogue stories generated in peer to peer interactions. According to media discourse analysis, the micro analysis highlights specific verbal acts and their interplay with such visual elements as colour and typography.Der Beitrag diskutiert multimodale Mittel der Selbstdarstellung in Instagram-Accounts zum Thema Depression. Auf der Grundlage der Mediendiskursanalyse werden Handlungen von Diskursakteur*innen untersucht, die mit verschiedenen multimodalen Mitteln realisiert werden. Im Fokus stehen interaktive Konstruktionen von narrativen Strukturen und Aushandlungen von Erfahrungswissensbeständen betroffener Personen
Long Covid as a Collective Experience: A Photo Essay
Full text linkAlthough diseases manifest themselves in individual bodies, they usually have multiple, and often systemic, causes. They do not only affect one’s immediate social environment, but whole cities and nations. The pandemic has demonstrated the extent of these interdependencies: a butterfly effect which makes clear that a virus, animals, humans and the environment cannot be thought of separately. And yet, this collective dimension of sickness and health is often pushed into the background. On various levels, Long Covid shows, just like the pandemic, that illness is a collective experience. The syndrome demonstrates the complexity, multidimensionality and the contradictory nature of the collective dimension of being sick and getting well; what it also demonstrates is that this collectivity can become a springboard for long-term transformation. This essay is one way of mobilizing the experience and knowledge of Long Covid patients to signal that we need to rethink our conceptions of illness and use them as a foundation for building new (health)care infrastructures that can hold us all. Whatever their possible shape, we should start discussing them now.Although diseases manifest themselves in individual bodies, they usually have multiple, and often systemic, causes. They do not only affect one’s immediate social environment, but whole cities and nations. The pandemic has demonstrated the extent of these interdependencies: a butterfly effect which makes clear that a virus, animals, humans and the environment cannot be thought of separately. And yet, this collective dimension of sickness and health is often pushed into the background. On various levels, Long Covid shows, just like the pandemic, that illness is a collective experience. The syndrome demonstrates the complexity, multidimensionality and the contradictory nature of the collective dimension of being sick and getting well; what it also demonstrates is that this collectivity can become a springboard for long-term transformation. This essay is one way of mobilizing the experience and knowledge of Long Covid patients to signal that we need to rethink our conceptions of illness and use them as a foundation for building new (health)care infrastructures that can hold us all. Whatever their possible shape, we should start discussing them now