This AHRC-funded Fellowship analyses representations of bodies and minds in Spanish and European literatures and cultures. Drawing together specialists in Modern Languages and Medical Humanities, Creative Writing, Public Health and Psychology, the project will trace the development of narratives of illness from the 1870s to the 1960s, and their legacy in the present day, with particular attention to gendered representations of psychological and physical conditions. Foregrounding Hispanic Studies alongside French, German, Italian and Portuguese, the project seeks to foster collaboration and shared insights across languages and other academic disciplines. The project will analyse the importance of cultural representation for the dissemination and legitimisation of ideas about health and illness, and the ways in which literary and other cultural texts express social preoccupations, including during periods of upheaval and change.
For more information about the project, please read Prof. Katharine Murphy’s piece on ‘Reading Bodies in European Literatures and Cultures’ published in the Multilingual Medical Humanities series of The Polyphony.
Planned engagement activities include a creative workshop on Burnout and Resilience in contemporary writing and visual art for publication in a volume of Riptide; and a speaker event with authors of health fiction. If you are interested in learning more or contributing to the project, please contact the team.
This project is generously funded by an AHRC Research, Development & Engagement Fellowship (AH/X01133X/1), 2023-2025.