In its essence, this thesis is concerned with how the language of immunology affects eventual patient conceptions of self,. Specifically, I examine how biomedical discourse affects both the mental and physical experience of autoimmune disease. Typically described in militaristic terms as an 'attack on self,' autoimmunity, (when an individual's immune system response to 'self' tissues), encourages the following questions: what is self, in a biological sense? What is the effect of medical intervention on a patient's sense of selfhood, when the offending other to be removed is actually an integral part of one's own body? Is there a mental readjustment of what constitutes selfhood in the wake of such a diagnosis? In my attempt to answer these questions I have divided the thesis into three chapters. Chapter one is an exploration of the semantics and methodology of basic biomedical research, eventually culminating in a discussion of two different paradigms of immunity currently in operation. One of the main points of this thesis is that scientific representations of the body are indeed constructions, rather than reflections of the truth of our selves, and that these constructions are in constant flux. By comparing and contrasting two different immunological paradigms used to frame research and articulate the body, I aim to show how different the mental body could be according to which paradigm is followed. In particular, I want to show that autoimmunity is not necessarily an attack on self, or a rejection of self. This thesis is therefore also a search for a 'better' metaphor for autoimmunity that does not involve the rejection of the diseased self. Chapter two examines the language of immunology from a cultural perspective. Paradigms of the immune system have their roots in cultural ideology as much as in the laboratory. This chapter aims to show how research and sociopolitical and economic systems serve to mutually reinforce a common view of 'reality.' Chapter three then looks at personal narratives of individuals living with autoimmune disease in light of how basic research methodology and culture construct and treat disease and the diseased individual. By showing the link between supposedly objective science and the personal experience of illness, I am hoping that work such as mine affects not only patients that might be grappling with confusing diagnoses and searching for alternate ways of conceptualizing their diseased bodies, but also how scientists and medical practitioners explain the body to others. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/22952 |
| Date | 09 1900 |
| Creators | Cwiartka, Monika |
| Contributors | Brophy, Sarah, English |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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