First Person Mortal Personal Narratives of Illness, Dying, and Grief

In First Person Mortal, Lucy Bregman and Sara Thiermann interpret the autobiographical narratives of C. S. Lewis, Simone de Beauvoir, Gilda Radnor, and many others as attempts by deeply thoughtful individuals to wrest meaning from situations that often seem to defy - even mock - human comprehension. The authors consider a variety of issues recurring in these narratives: theories of autobiography; patients' rights and medical ethics; modern society's emphasis on "expressive individualism"; the genderedness of mortal experience; the destruction of the body in a culture prizing physical beauty; the loss of the self and personal identity; and the ways people use religion or "spirituality" to interpret their experiences. Drs. Bregman and Thiermann conclude that in a society lacking a public, normative understanding of death and dying, the autobiographical genre is uniquely appropriate to our quest for meaning.Bregmann, Lucy is the author of 'First Person Mortal Personal Narratives of Illness, Dying, and Grief' with ISBN 9781557787156 and ISBN 1557787158.