Bibliopharmaceuticals: Poetic Subversions of Medicine through the Word
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14195/2182-8830_7-1_10Keywords:
textual studies, materiality of the text, literature and medicine, object poetry, object-booksAbstract
When talking about books, we usually refer to a specific format: the codex. Nevertheless, the codex is only one possibility among many others textual formats. The rise of the codex for practical reasons led to the disuse of an important variety of formats and homogenized the fashion in which texts are transmitted, so relegating and even condemning to the disappearance a great variety of textual transmitters. First, this study vindicates the inclusion in the field of literary studies of textual objects edited in formats different from the codex. Secondly, it focuses on the analysis of object-books related to medicine. Taking the classical concept of the word – logos – as remedy, I propose the term biblio-pharmacos to refer to books presented as medicine – pill boxes, capsule bottles, etc. – produced and written by Spanish poets and artists of the 21st century. I argue that the reading of these books is intended as a personal and social therapeutic practice. Finally, I point out that these original writing formats enhance the possibilities of the use of the object-book by loading the text which it transmits with new connotations. This conjunction between writing, object, and medicine creates a synergy that offers to readers a unique literary object.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
MATLIT embraces full open access to all issues. Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
- A CC licensing information in a machine-readable format is embedded in all articles published by MATLIT.
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
- You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation.
- No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
