ATS2294 · Death, dying and narrative

Overview

In the process of dying, we face the limits of modern biomedicine’s curative potential and come face to face with the fragility of human life. How does our understanding of life, death and illness challenge our understanding of biomedicine’s utility and power? How do patients and their carers describe their experiences of the end-of-life stage? What does it mean to live while dying? How might health care providers harness narrative medicine as a tool for enhancing their own compassion and professional longevity? Grounded in the methods of literary studies and performance studies, this cornerstone unit will introduce you to the discipline of narrative medicine, centering the patient experience with death and dying. Through narrative texts and performance, you will explore complex existential and ethical questions of illness and caregiving, death and dying. This unit seeks to make connections between mind and body, in both theory and practice. In addition to analytical and self-reflective tasks, you will explore medicine and health as a physical, embodied experience. Through this intellectual and physical process, you will develop an understanding of the principles, concepts and practices that underpin narrative medicine: intersubjectivity, philosophies of embodiment, close reading and deep listening, creativity, storytelling and relationality.

Areas of study: Literary studies Medical and health humanities

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

Within semester assessment 100%

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. understand and apply the core concepts and principles of narrative medicine;
2. develop and apply skills in deep listening, reflection, interpretation and written expression;
3. demonstrate critical engagement and empathy with the patient experience through performance and high level analytical and/or creative written practice;
4. express your grasp of key concepts and principles in the medical humanities in various formats;
5. participate in self-directed collaborative group work.

Workload

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.