Medical Surreal: Doctor and Patient Narr

Medicine is not just a science, but an art. In particular, the art of narrative has played a prominent role in both the production of medical knowledge, such as in the doctor’s case report, and in the ways patients convey their own sense and experience of illness. Even language itself has sometimes been the symptom of illness, and sometimes the means of cure. This course will explore narratives of illness, medical care, and deviance in German literature, with a few forays into writing from the Americas. Through encounters with a selection of novellas and short stories from the 19th through the 20th centuries, we will explore the ways in which authors have drawn from their medical experiences to produce novel forms of writing. We will pay particular attention to the role of the surreal, the uncanny, and the disorienting as thematic and textual strategies in the navigation of the complexities of medical care. We will question how narratives can both construct and subvert pathologized subjects, as well as develop our skills as critical readers of texts which challenge scientific and literary genres.

No prerequisites. All readings and course discussions are in English.