The Ethics of Life Writing Eakin, P.J., ed. New York: Cornell University Press, 2004. 271pp. ISBN: 0-8014-88338.In examining the ethical considerations in the life writing genre (biography and autobiography), Eakin has assembled an interdisciplinary range of perspectives. Each reflects on the ethical considerations that should be examined as an author begins an autobiography, a memoir, or a story of the life of another. The area I found most revealing was the breadth among the various disciplines in their approaches to the subject. The sociological perspective encompassed a global perspective, viewing the ethical questions from a study of balance for society and the individual. The philosophical discussion centered on the role life writing can play in shaping people's lives. The writer's struggle centers on personal decision-making and effect on the subject versus the need to expose truth. The contributors discuss the difficulties in discerning truth and remembering history, writing as moral inquiry, finding a comfort zone between trust and betrayal, and the role played through counter-stories, i.e., stories that point out maladies in our society and ourselves. This work reminds us that writing is not done in a vacuum. Autobiographies and memoirs include segments and thoughts of those who had an impact on the life and course of the writer. The effect the work may have on the lives of all involved must be weighed before the work becomes a public document.In each of the accounts, the authors identify and address the complexity in making private information public. They each explore a balance between their need to express their story and the right of privacy for those included in the narratives. How may the writer, or should the writer, keep the trust of those persons' confidences while remaining true to their reflective self. They expose the power of "self-silencing" as one moves from private notes and journals to public text. Is the exposure gratuitous or integral for the reader's understanding? None question the right to publish, only the extent to which the author may ethically present details of their experience when those details involve interaction with or impressions of others. They must weigh the potential good over the potential harm done in the process of making the experience public.Moral inquiry brings a judgment dilemma. The writers in this section have authored autobiographies that reveal their relationships with parent or child. In each the process of having to assemble information on the life of the parent or child apart from their own experience broadened the understanding of the complexity of their relationship. Wrestling with trying to find an honest portrayal of the parent's actions and emotions, or the child's, was arduous. What should be held within the family secrets and what requires public telling? …

An exegesis to accompany the Novella: In the garden where we've been planted

The Ethics of Life Writing

Literary Theory and Criticism: An Oxford Guide

Objectives:To describe how physicians think and feel about their perceived mistakes, to examine how physicians’ prior beliefs and manners of coping with mistakes may influence their emotional responses, and to promote further discussion in the medical community about this sensitive issue. Design:Audiotaped, in-depth interviews with physicians in which each physician discussed a previous mistake and its impact on his or her lift. Transcripts of the interviews were analyzed qualitatively and the data organized into five topic areas: the nature of the mistake, the physician’s beliefs about the mistake, the emotions experienced in the aftermath of the mistake, the physician’s way of coping with the mistake, and changes in the physician’s practice as a result of the mistake. Participants and setting:Eleven general internists and medical subspecialists practicing at a community, university-affiliated hospital in Oregon. Results:Themes emerging from analysis of the interviews were the ubiquity of mistakes in clinical practice; the infrequency of self-disclosure about mistakes to colleagues, family, and friends; the lack of support among colleagues; the degree of emotional impact on the physician, so that some mistakes were remembered in great detail even after several years; and the influence of the physician’s professional locus of control on subsequent emotions. Conclusions:The perception of having made a mistake creates significant emotional distress for practicing physicians. The severity of this distress may be influenced by factors such as prior beliefs and perfectionism. The extent to which physicians share this distress with colleagues may be influenced by the degree of competitiveness engendered by medical training. Open discussion of mistakes should be more prominent in medical training and practice, and there should be continued research on this topic.

background

The heart of darkness: the impact of perceived mistakes on physicians.

background or methods or result

Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction

Preface for Instructors Acknowledgments 1. Critical Theory and You What Does Critical Theory Have to Do with Me? What Will I Learn about Critical Theory from This Book? Critical Theory and Cultural Criticism Three Questions about Interpretation Most Students Ask Why Feeling Confused Can Be a Good Sign 2. Using Concepts from Reader-Response Theory to Understand Our Own Literary Interpretations Why Should We Learn about Reader-Response Theory? Response Vehicles Personal Identification The Familiar Character The Familiar Plot Event The Familiar Setting Response Exercises Personal-Identification Exercise Familiar-Character Exercise Familiar-Plot-Event Exercise Familiar-Setting Exercise How Our Personal Responses Can Help or Hinder Interpretation Using Our Personal Responses to Generate Paper Topics Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Reader-Response Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Exercises for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 3. Using Concepts from New Critical Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about New Critical Theory? Basic Concepts Theme Formal Elements Unity Close Reading and Textual Evidence Interpretation Exercises Appreciating the Importance of Tradition: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Recognizing the Presence of Death: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Understanding the Power of Alienation: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Respecting the Importance of Nonconformity: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Responding to the Challenge of the Unknown: Interpreting "I started Early-Took my Dog Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over New Critical Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 4. Using Concepts from Psychoanalytic Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about Psychoanalytic Theory? Basic Concepts The Family Repression and the Unconscious The Defenses Core Issues Dream Symbolism Interpretation Exercises Analyzing Characters' Dysfunctional Behavior: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Exploring a Character's Insanity: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Understanding Dream Images in Literature: Interpreting "I started Early-Took my Dog" Recognizing a Character's Self-Healing: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Using Psychoanalytic Concepts in Service of Other Theories: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Psychoanalytic Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 5. Using Concepts from Marxist Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about Marxist Theory? Basic Concepts Classism Capitalism Capitalist Ideologies Competition Commodification The American Dream Rugged Individualism Religion Interpretation Exercises Understanding the Operations of Capitalism: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Recognizing the Operations of the American Dream: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Analyzing the Operations of Classism: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Resisting Classism: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Learning When Not to Use Marxist Concepts: Resisting the Temptation to Interpret "I started Early-Took my Dog" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Marxist Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 6. Using Concepts from Feminist Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about Feminist Theory? Basic Concepts Patriarchy Traditional Gender Roles The Objectification of Women Sexism The "Cult of 'True Womanhood'" Interpretation Exercises Rejecting the Objectification of Women: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Resisting Patriarchal Ideology: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Recognizing a Conflicted Attitude toward Patriarchy: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Analyzing a Sexist Text: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Understanding Patriarchy's Psychological Oppression of Women: Interpreting "I started Early-Took my Dog" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Feminist Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 7. Using Concepts from Lesbian, Gay, and Queer Theories to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about Lesbian, Gay, and Queer Theories? Basic Concepts Heterosexism Homophobia Homosocial Activities The Woman-identified Woman Homoerotic Imagery Queer Theory Interpretation Exercises Rejecting Lesbian Stereotypes: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Analyzing Homophobia: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Recognizing the Woman-Identified Woman in a Heterosexual Text: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Using Queer Theory: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Drawing upon Context: Interpreting "I started Early-Took my Dog" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Lesbian, Gay, and Queer Theories and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 8. Using Concepts from African American Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about African American Theory? Basic Concepts African American Culture and Literature Racism Forms of Racism Institutionalized Racism Internalized Racism Intraracial Racism Double Consciousness Interpretation Exercises Analyzing the Overt Operations of Institutionalized Racism: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Recognizing the "Less Visible" Operations of Institutionalized Racism: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Understanding the Operations of Internalized Racism: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Exploring the Function of Black Characters in White Literature: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Learning When Not to Use African American Concepts: Resisting the Temptation to Interpret "I started Early-Took my Dog" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over African American Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 9. Using Concepts from Postcolonial Theory to Understand Literature Why Should We Learn about Postcolonial Theory? Basic Concepts Colonialist Ideology Othering Subaltern The Colonial Subject Mimicry Unhomeliness Anti-colonialist Resistance Interpretation Exercises Understanding Colonialist Ideology: Interpreting "The Battle Royal" Analyzing the Colonial Subject: Interpreting "Everyday Use" Exploring the Influence of Cultural Categories: Interpreting "A Rose for Emily" Appreciating Anticolonialist Resistance: Interpreting "Don't Explain" Recognizing the Othering of Nature: Interpreting "I started Early-Took my Dog" Food for Further Thought Thinking It Over Postcolonial Theory and Cultural Criticism Taking the Next Step Questions for Further Practice Suggestions for Further Reading 10. Holding on to What You've Learned A Shorthand Overview of Our Eight Critical Theories A Shorthand Overview of Our Literary Interpretation Exercises A Shorthand Overview of the Range of Perspectives Offered by Each Theory Critical Theory and Cultural Criticism Revisited Critical Theory and an Ethics for a Diverse World Appendices Appendix A: "I started Early-Took my Dog" (Emily Dickinson, c. 1862) Appendix B: "A Rose for Emily" (William Faulkner, 1931) Appendix C: "The Battle Royal" (Ralph Ellison, 1952) Appendix D: "Everyday Use" (Alice Walker, 1973) Appendix E: "Don't Explain" (Jewelle Gomez, 1987) Appendix F: Additional Literary Works for Further Practice Index

An exegesis to accompany the Novella: In the garden where we've been planted

Citations

The Ethics of Life Writing

Literary Theory and Criticism: An Oxford Guide

References

The heart of darkness: the impact of perceived mistakes on physicians.

The Ethics of Life Writing

Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction

Using Critical Theory: How to Read and Write About Literature

Literary Theory and Criticism: An Oxford Guide