Essays in French Literature and Culture (Oct 2021)
Pathographical and Pathological in Zola and Proust
Abstract
This article outlines two common approaches within French Studies scholarship to the medical content of literary texts: a discursive- based approach designated here as ‘pathological’, and an approach focused on narratives of the experience of human suffering, illness and recovery designated ‘pathographical’. The article, aiming to situate French Studies scholarship in relation to Medical Humanities, identifies tensions between the two approaches before identifying common ground in adopting them productively in relation to works by Émile Zola – an archetype of the ‘pathological’ author – and Marcel Proust, author of the emblematic ‘autopathographical’ narrative. Both authors’ works contain numerous instances of ‘medical humanities’ preoccupations, approachable from both ‘pathological’ and ‘pathographical’ perspectives.
