Reconstructing Pain and Joy Linguistic, Literary and Cultural Perspectives |
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| Author:
| Lascaratou, Chryssoula
Despotopoulou, Anna
Ifantidou, Elly |
| ISBN: | 978-1-84718-519-8 |
| Publication Date: | Apr 2008 |
| Publisher: | Cambridge Scholars Publishing
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| Book Format: | Hardback |
| List Price: | AUD $116.95 |
Book Description:
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"In an important contribution to contemporary thinking about pain and its cultural and literary representations, Lascaratou, Despotopoulou, and Ifantidou bring together essays from widely divergent theoretical and historical fields to explore the relationship of pain to joy. How was pain transformed to triumphant joy in the fiery deaths of the Protestant martyrs? How is it that audiences derive pleasure from the depiction of pain on screen or stage? Is it possible for past pleasure to...
More Description"In an important contribution to contemporary thinking about pain and its cultural and literary representations, Lascaratou, Despotopoulou, and Ifantidou bring together essays from widely divergent theoretical and historical fields to explore the relationship of pain to joy. How was pain transformed to triumphant joy in the fiery deaths of the Protestant martyrs? How is it that audiences derive pleasure from the depiction of pain on screen or stage? Is it possible for past pleasure to outweigh present pain? These questions amongst many others raised by this intriguing book suggest ways in which academic discussions of pain have developed from early investigations of its inexpressibility to considering it as a phenomenon that can only be fully understood in broad theoretical and historical terms. This is a splendid book that draws on the work of such groundbreaking critics as Elaine Scarry and Catherine Belsey and sets these alongside emerging voices to produce something new, provocative, and persuasive." Lucy Bending, Lecturer, University of Reading, Author of The Representation of Bodily Pain in Late Nineteenth-Century English Culture. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2000. "A stimulating collection of essays, providing insightful research and reflection on the relation between the textual construction of pain and the ultimate ineffability of experienced pain." Theo van Leeuwen, Professor at the Centre for Language and Communication Research, Cardiff University, UK. Co-author of Kress, G. and Van Leeuwen, T. (2001) Multimodal Discourse: The Modes and Media of Contemporary Communication. London: Edward Arnold.