Time and Date: Tuesday, March 4th, from 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM.
Location: East Baltimore campus, Armstrong Medical Education Building (AMEB) Room 270*
* AMEB requires SOM ID Badge swipe to access. We will have students available to let people in for the first ten minutes of each meeting. After that, please text or email Jonathan Kuo if you are unable to access the building (jkuo17@jh.edu / 858 243 0398).
Food: Dinner and non-alcoholic beverages will be served!
RSVP: Sign up at the following link to join our listserv and hear about future events: https://forms.gle/LnggqsL59dcHUAPD6 .
More Information: Check out our website! https://hopkinsmedicalhumanities.org/about/sts-medical-humanities-hub/medicine-society-reading-group/
Agenda: In addition to introducing everyone to the group, we will be discussing the following readings and theme. Please note that reading is not required, although it is highly recommended:
Identity, the Mind, and the Body
→ Reading #1: Chu, Andrea Long. "China Brain." n+1 no. 41, fall 2021. https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-41/essays/china-brain/
→ Reading #2: Chu, Andrea Long. Editorial, "My New Vagina Won’t Make Me Happy." New York Times, November 24, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/24/opinion/sunday/vaginoplasty-transgender-medicine.html?unlocked_article_code=1.yE4.NjOs.h9_cPmQUm_DR&smid=url-share
→ Enhancement (just skim if you have time / are curious, no need to read in detail): American Psychiatric Association. Chapters on "Bipolar and Related Disorders," "Depressive Disorders," and "Gender Dysphoria." In Desk Reference to the Diagnostic Criteria from DSM-5 (R) (Arlington, TX: American Psychiatric Association Publishing). https://psychiatryonline-org.proxy1.library.jhu.edu/doi/book/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787
In these two readings, Andrea Long Chu, an essayist and literary critic, explores how her identity has been shaped by interactions with the medical system and the consequences of such interactions. Narrated from the perspective of her brain and interweaved with anecdotes from her life and history, the first piece, "China Brain," recounts Chu's experiences attempting to treat depression using transcranial magnetic stimulation, a procedure in which magnetic pulses are used to stimulate certain parts of the brain. The second piece, an editorial in the New York Times from 2018, offers Chu's thoughts on defining transgender identity, the place of biology and the body in such a definition, and the limits of framing medical interventions through the parameter of pain.
The final optional enhancement reading gives the professional definition for psychiatric conditions mentioned in Chu's pieces. This should be read last; no need to spend a lot of time on this.
We estimate that these readings will take about 30 minutes. As you read these pieces, we encourage you to think about the following questions:
◦ Throughout the
n+1 piece, Chu explores different perspectives on the brain. What, exactly, is Chu's argument here? In other words, what is she trying to say about the brain—especially in relation to the body and the mind?
◦ In the
NYT editorial, Chu claims that "[t]he negative passions — grief, self-loathing, shame, regret — are as much a human right as universal health care, or food." How do you square this notion with the idea that health professionals should do no harm? How is this claim explored in the n+1 piece?
◦ If any other questions come to you while reading, make sure to write them down!
