In this Book
- Idioms of Distress: Psychosomatic Disorders in Medical and Imaginative Literature
- Book
- 2003
- Published by: State University of New York Press
summary
This interdisciplinary study examines the enigmatic category of psychosomatic disorders as articulated in medical writings and represented in literary works of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Six key works are analyzed: Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Émile Zola’s Thérèse Raquin, Thomas Mann’s Buddenbrooks, Arthur Miller’s Broken Glass, Brian O’Doherty’s The Strange Case of Mademoiselle P., and Pat Barker’s Regeneration. Each is a case study in detection as the hidden sources of bodily ills are uncovered in intra- or interpersonal conflicts such as guilt, family tensions, and marital discord. The book fosters a better understanding of these puzzling disorders by revealing how they function simultaneously as masks and as manifestations of inner suffering.
Table of Contents
Download Full Book
- PART I: Hiding and Seeking Distress
- CHAPTER THREE. The Mysterious Leap
- pp. 37-52
- CHAPTER FOUR. Literary Patients
- pp. 53-70
- PART II: Metaphors of Distress
- CHAPTER ELEVEN. Outing the Distress
- pp. 191-200
- Bibliography
- pp. 211-220
Additional Information
ISBN
9780791487594
DOI
MARC Record
OCLC
55939309
Pages
240
Launched on MUSE
2012-01-11
Language
English
Open Access
No