Pathology as a Phenomenological Tool

Havi Carel

doi:10.1007/s11007-021-09538-9

Pathology as a Phenomenological Tool

Havi Carel

Department of Philosophy

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article (Academic Journal) › peer-review

21 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

The phenomenological method (or rather, methods) has been fruitfully used in exploring the experience of illness in recent years. However, the role of illness is not limited to that of a passive object for phenomenological scrutiny. I propose that illness, and pathology more generally, can be developed into a phenomenological method in their own right. I claim that studying cases of pathology, breakdown, and illness offer illumination not only of these experiences, but also of normal function and the tacit processes that underpin it. In particular, I claim that the study of embodiment can be greatly enhanced, and indeed would be incomplete, without examination of bodily breakdown and what I term bodily doubt. I offer an analogy between illness and Husserl’s epoché, suggesting that both are a source of distancing, and therefore motivate a reflective stance.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	201-217
Number of pages	17
Journal	Continental Philosophy Review
Volume	54
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s11007-021-09538-9
Publication status	Published - 9 Mar 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
I thank the Wellcome Trust for funding the research for this paper via the Life of Breath Senior Investigator award (www.lifeofbreath.org , Grant Number 103340). I am grateful to several people who discussed the ideas in this paper with me, in particular to Tom Baldwin, Matthew Ratcliffe, Michael Brady and Ian James Kidd. I am also grateful to audiences at the Northern Phenomenology Network meeting 2019, York, and the Scottish Philosophical Association meeting, Aberdeen 2019, for helpful feedback on this paper. I thank the editors, Anthony Fernandez and Steven Crowell, for their generous and helpful feedback on the paper.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s).

Keywords

Phenomenology
illness
pathology
Merleau-Ponty
Husserl
epoche

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Life of breath: breathing in cultural, clinical and lived experience.
Carel, H. H. (Principal Investigator)
1/10/14 → 31/03/20
Project: Research

Cite this

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title = "Pathology as a Phenomenological Tool",

abstract = "The phenomenological method (or rather, methods) has been fruitfully used in exploring the experience of illness in recent years. However, the role of illness is not limited to that of a passive object for phenomenological scrutiny. I propose that illness, and pathology more generally, can be developed into a phenomenological method in their own right. I claim that studying cases of pathology, breakdown, and illness offer illumination not only of these experiences, but also of normal function and the tacit processes that underpin it. In particular, I claim that the study of embodiment can be greatly enhanced, and indeed would be incomplete, without examination of bodily breakdown and what I term bodily doubt. I offer an analogy between illness and Husserl{\textquoteright}s epoch{\'e}, suggesting that both are a source of distancing, and therefore motivate a reflective stance.",

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author = "Havi Carel",

note = "Funding Information: I thank the Wellcome Trust for funding the research for this paper via the Life of Breath Senior Investigator award (www.lifeofbreath.org , Grant Number 103340). I am grateful to several people who discussed the ideas in this paper with me, in particular to Tom Baldwin, Matthew Ratcliffe, Michael Brady and Ian James Kidd. I am also grateful to audiences at the Northern Phenomenology Network meeting 2019, York, and the Scottish Philosophical Association meeting, Aberdeen 2019, for helpful feedback on this paper. I thank the editors, Anthony Fernandez and Steven Crowell, for their generous and helpful feedback on the paper. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021, The Author(s).",

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AB - The phenomenological method (or rather, methods) has been fruitfully used in exploring the experience of illness in recent years. However, the role of illness is not limited to that of a passive object for phenomenological scrutiny. I propose that illness, and pathology more generally, can be developed into a phenomenological method in their own right. I claim that studying cases of pathology, breakdown, and illness offer illumination not only of these experiences, but also of normal function and the tacit processes that underpin it. In particular, I claim that the study of embodiment can be greatly enhanced, and indeed would be incomplete, without examination of bodily breakdown and what I term bodily doubt. I offer an analogy between illness and Husserl’s epoché, suggesting that both are a source of distancing, and therefore motivate a reflective stance.

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Pathology as a Phenomenological Tool

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Bibliographical note

Keywords

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Life of breath: breathing in cultural, clinical and lived experience.

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