Medicine and the novel in nineteenth-century France

This project will focus on the intersection between the novel form and particular aspects of medical scientific discourse in the nineteenth century. These could include: hereditary theory, hygienism, Pasteur and infectious disease, psychiatry, the doctor-patient relationship, or particular diseases. Engaging with the recently developed area of the Medical Humanities, the project could also reflect on the value of literary works for medical practice. The primary focus should be on the French context but this could be a comparative project examining the English or German novel also. The project will consider how medical discourse is represented, imagined, and contested in literature and the interaction between literary and medical practices.