Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is a contested condition that generates scepticism and occupies a marginalised position within medical and social contexts. The thesis examines the illness experiences, and specifically the experiences of self, for people affected with CFS. Using qualitative inquiry, a substantive theory related to the process of self-renewal and adaptation associated with CFS is explicated. The theory encompasses the trajectory of CFS from onset to chronicity, and in exceptional instances, recovery. Illness narratives were derived from in-depth, semi-structured interviews of 19 adults, including 16 people affected with, and 3 people recovered from, CFS. Data was coded and analysed using a grounded theory approach. Analysis generated two parallel narratives that defined the illness experience of CFS: the narrative of the illness biographies and the narrative of self, specifically the struggling and diminished self seeking renewal. The illness biographies encompassed the stories of symptoms and their explanations, the encounters that ensued and their contentious milieu. The narrative of self was the primary narrative. It articulated the negative consequences to self and personhood associated with CFS, named the Violation of Self, and the consequent efforts of participants to decrease the struggle and violation by use of the Guardian Response and the Reconstructing Response. The Guardian Response provided protection and self-reclamation. The Reconstructing Response fostered self-renewal and meaning. The two narratives were bridged by the threats of CFS. That is, the illness biographies were accompanied by threats of disruption related to chronic illness, and by threats of invalidation that arose from CFS as a contested condition. In turn, these threats provided the catalyst to the violation and responses as described in the narrative of self. Under different conditions the relative strengths of violation, guardianship or reconstruction fluctuated, and it was these fluctuations that presented the participants with the ongoing struggle of CFS.

It has been estimated that by the year 2014 there will be a 12 per cent increase in the number of adults with at least one chronic illness condition (Carrier, 2009). The turn to caring for those with a chronic illness at home has resulted in carers having an increased risk of developing health problems (Ohman & Soderberg, 2004). As such there is a need to understand how families manage and cope with illness at home. This study has examined the effect chronic illness had on not only the woman with illness, but also the immediate family closely involved with her care. Additionally the study has sought to address the effect chronic illness had on the 'self' and 'identity' of these three women and to determine what extent and impact the illness process had on the relationships within this family. The study used open-ended biographic narrative interviews to elicit data. The research revealed that each woman experienced change and loss to both 'self' and 'identity' albeit in different ways. Interestingly and of significance is the way these women in their narrative accounts revisited their past lives in implicating and accounting for the present and the future (Freeman 2010). It was discovered that the past history and past relationships of these women affected how they each responded to illness and each other in their present circumstances.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is a contested condition that generates scepticism and occupies a marginalised position within medical and social contexts. The thesis examines the illness experiences, and specifically the experiences of self, for people affected with CFS. Using qualitative inquiry, a substantive theory related to the process of self-renewal and adaptation associated with CFS is explicated. The theory encompasses the trajectory of CFS from onset to chronicity, and in exceptional instances, recovery. Illness narratives were derived from in-depth, semi-structured interviews of 19 adults, including 16 people affected with, and 3 people recovered from, CFS. Data was coded and analysed using a grounded theory approach. Analysis generated two parallel narratives that defined the illness experience of CFS: the narrative of the illness biographies and the narrative of self, specifically the struggling and diminished self seeking renewal. The illness biographies encompassed the stories of symptoms and their explanations, the encounters that ensued and their contentious milieu. The narrative of self was the primary narrative. It articulated the negative consequences to self and personhood associated with CFS, named the Violation of Self, and the consequent efforts of participants to decrease the struggle and violation by use of the Guardian Response and the Reconstructing Response. The Guardian Response provided protection and self-reclamation. The Reconstructing Response fostered self-renewal and meaning. The two narratives were bridged by the threats of CFS. That is, the illness biographies were accompanied by threats of disruption related to chronic illness, and by threats of invalidation that arose from CFS as a contested condition. In turn, these threats provided the catalyst to the violation and responses as described in the narrative of self. Under different conditions the relative strengths of violation, guardianship or reconstruction fluctuated, and it was these fluctuations that presented the participants with the ongoing struggle of CFS.

Through a study of the work of three important writers, this thesis engages with the traumatic memories of the second half of the twentieth century in Czechoslovakia in order to highlight the value of literature in widening critical understandings of the continuing legacy of this complex era, which was dominated by totalitarian regimes under the Communist governments which gained control after the upheaval of the Second World War. Whilst these years were not unilaterally traumatic, many lives were dramatically affected by border closures and by the experience of living under a regime that maintained control through methods including confiscation of property, surveillance, arbitrary imprisonment, show trials, and executions. Many of the stories of this era could not be published openly because of censorship, and the persecution of intellectuals led to a wave of emigration, during which a number of writers moved to France. Using theories of trauma, exile, illness, and of self and other, this thesis opens up a dialogue between the work of three writers who engage, albeit from very different perspectives, with this little-explored intersection between Czech and French. The first chapter explores Daniela Hodrová's translated Prague trilogy as a first-hand witness to her nation's dispossession and as a form of resistance to the deletion of memory. The second chapter considers the painful transgenerational legacy of the era as it plays out in the work of bilingual writer Jean-Gaspard Páleníček. Chapter Three considers the ways in which the Prague novels of established French author Sylvie Germain negotiate the fine line between an appropriation of the stories of the other and a moral responsibility to bear witness. By bringing these authors together for the first time and locating their work within French Studies, my work foregrounds the need for Western criticism to pay attention to other valuable voices who can contribute to our understandings of the traumatic experience that has shaped modern history.

Pregnancy, a human phenomenon experienced throughout the world and throughout history, has been largely ignored by the philosophical community. A preference for the abnormal and the extraordinary has left this common yet challenging process on the sidelines of philosophical discussion. Pregnancy stands as a significant challenge to many of our intuitions about the self, particularly those concerning the boundaries, plurality and diachronic identity of the self. Because of this, pregnancy necessitates a theory of the self which does not merely uphold our usual assumptions about the self. Daniel Dennett presents a theory of the self which meets this criterion. He argues that the self is a centre of narrative gravity: an abstract, theoretical entity which is useful for the explanation and prediction of an individual’s behaviour. Dennett’s theory, though provocative, lacks a basis in typical human experience. He relies primarily on thought experiments and extraordinary conditions to support his theory. To demonstrate the applicability and generality of this theory, it must be tested against a common, natural human occurrence like pregnancy. In this paper we explore the application of Daniel Dennett’s theory of the narrative self to the experience of pregnancy. This application yields a double result. Dennett’s theory is bolstered by a demonstration of its generality and applicability, and the experience of pregnancy is placed into a context in which it can be validated and understood.

Pregnancy, a human phenomenon experienced throughout the world and throughout history, has been largely ignored by the philosophical community. A preference for the abnormal and the extraordinary has left this common yet challenging process on the sidelines of philosophical discussion. Pregnancy stands as a significant challenge to many of our intuitions about the self, particularly those concerning the boundaries, plurality and diachronic identity of the self. Because of this, pregnancy necessitates a theory of the self which does not merely uphold our usual assumptions about the self. Daniel Dennett presents a theory of the self which meets this criterion. He argues that the self is a centre of narrative gravity: an abstract, theoretical entity which is useful for the explanation and prediction of an individual’s behaviour. Dennett’s theory, though provocative, lacks a basis in typical human experience. He relies primarily on thought experiments and extraordinary conditions to support his theory. To demonstrate the applicability and generality of this theory, it must be tested against a common, natural human occurrence like pregnancy. In this paper we explore the application of Daniel Dennett’s theory of the narrative self to the experience of pregnancy. This application yields a double result. Dennett’s theory is bolstered by a demonstration of its generality and applicability, and the experience of pregnancy is placed into a context in which it can be validated and understood.

This literature review examines the default mode network (DMN) and how its role in self related processing and narrative selfhood relates to well-being. The essay explores the DMN in three levels of activity: Firstly in normal function, where mind-wandering is positively correlated with dissatisfaction; Secondly its abnormal function in depression, characterized by excessive activity and rumination; Thirdly in its arguably improved function during mindfulness and meditation, where lower activity is associated with higher well-being, decreased mind-wandering and altered sense of self. The essay shows a relationship between the DMN and well-being, where higher activity correlates with lower well-being.

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Doctor of Philosophy / This arts-informed inquiry is grounded in the lived experiences of five self-proclaimed artists including the researcher, who have turned to careers in teaching at varying stages of their lives. The stories of their transitions and evolving identities as both artists and teachers provide the investigative focus for this study. Although this research is relevant to teachers more generally, it specifically focuses on those who have chosen to teach Visual Arts. Particularly suited to a postmodern, arts-informed inquiry, the diverse forms of knowing that create our everyday experiences are acknowledged. The researcher became the bricoleur who collaged the individual stories of the first year artist-teachers into an integrated work of art. This constructivist approach included the use of visual imagery to transcend linguistic description. Through artworks, photographs, a self-narrative and novelette, the multiple ways these early career Visual Arts teachers came to understand themselves and their journeys are explored. This study has the potential to inform novice teachers of the transitions they may experience as they enter the teaching profession. Possible challenges, including the recognition that idealised beliefs might be traded in for more realistic representations, are discussed along with the notions of teaching as an art and the concept of resilience.

Doctor of Philosophy / This arts-informed inquiry is grounded in the lived experiences of five self-proclaimed artists including the researcher, who have turned to careers in teaching at varying stages of their lives. The stories of their transitions and evolving identities as both artists and teachers provide the investigative focus for this study. Although this research is relevant to teachers more generally, it specifically focuses on those who have chosen to teach Visual Arts. Particularly suited to a postmodern, arts-informed inquiry, the diverse forms of knowing that create our everyday experiences are acknowledged. The researcher became the bricoleur who collaged the individual stories of the first year artist-teachers into an integrated work of art. This constructivist approach included the use of visual imagery to transcend linguistic description. Through artworks, photographs, a self-narrative and novelette, the multiple ways these early career Visual Arts teachers came to understand themselves and their journeys are explored. This study has the potential to inform novice teachers of the transitions they may experience as they enter the teaching profession. Possible challenges, including the recognition that idealised beliefs might be traded in for more realistic representations, are discussed along with the notions of teaching as an art and the concept of resilience.