In the 1960's, cancer became one of the dominating diseases of our time and this has, in the last two decades, been increasingly reflected in German literature. This thesis examines a number of such texts (diaries, autopathographies, short stories and novels) from a literary and psychosocial standpoint. / First, a brief outline of the literary and social context attempts to answer questions concerning the production and reception of this 'cancer literature'. The following thematic analysis examines the role of cancer as a signifier. It shows that endo- and exogenic conceptions of the disease are present, and that mood changes of the afflicted person determine the meanings that are attributed to it. The ways cancer affects the social and bodily identity and different aspects of treatment are analyzed next. Finally, a chapter is devoted to the aesthetics of cancer, examining the metaphors used to describe the disease and the rhetorical means to represent the anxiety that accompanies it. / This study is intended not only as an interdisciplinary analysis of a chapter of contemporary German literature but as a contribution to a better understanding of how cancer is viewed and experienced.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.41720 |
| Date | January 1993 |
| Creators | Moamai, Marion. |
| Contributors | Goldsmith-Reber, Grudis (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | ge |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Department of German.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001394878, proquestno: NN94687, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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