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A Medical Sublime.

Author
Abstract
:

Inspired by a passage from Kate Chopin's The Awakening, this article considers the possibility of a "medical sublime." It works through a history of the sublime in theory and in the arts, from ancient times to the present. It articulates therapeutic dimensions of the sublime and gives contemporary examples of its medical relevance. In addition, it develops the concept of sublime-based stress-reduction workshops and programs. These workshops bring the sublime out of the library and the museum into the lives of the healthcare community-patients, families, clinicians, staff, concerned others-in the service of better navigating human vulnerability and finitude. Opening the cannon of aesthetic theory and the arts as resources for the human condition is at the heart of health humanities. The sublime can be an invaluable tool in this task.

Year of Publication
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2020
Journal
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The Journal of medical humanities
Volume
:
41
Issue
:
3
Number of Pages
:
265-287
ISSN Number
:
1041-3545
URL
:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-018-9536-y
DOI
:
10.1007/s10912-018-9536-y
Short Title
:
J Med Humanit
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