Victorian Literature, Dermatology, and Thinking in Cases

While a number of important studies have identified medical and somatic forms of Victorian realism, many of the interconnections between the burgeoning 19th-century discipline of dermatology and literary texts from the period have yet to be explored. Ariane de Waal presents her research project on the epistemological intersections of dermatological and literary writings in the Victorian era, arguing that both are characterised by case-based thinking.

Ariane de Waal is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. Her research focuses on British literature and culture of the late 18th and 19th centuries (and covers dermatology, history of knowledge, conceptions of physicality, and health and disease), as well as British contemporary culture and drama (including depictions of war, terrorism and neoliberalism, security discourses, racism). Her book Theatre on Terror: Subject Positions in British Drama was published by De Gruyter in 2017 and she is currently working on a second book project on dermatology and the Victorian novel.

Event details

Date: Thursday 22 April, 2021

Time: 5.00-6.30pm (17-18.30) GMT UK

Location: This is an online event. The Zoom link will be sent to you directly via email before the talk. Please note that registration will close at 3.30pm on Thursday 22 April.

If you have any questions about this event, please contact d.dove@surrey.ac.uk

Image: Erasmus Wilson 's, Healthy Skin: A Popular Treatise on Skin and Hair, John Churchill, London 1855, https://www.vialibri.net/years/books/6563980/1855-erasmus-wilson-healthy-skin-a-popular-treatise-on