Writing, Memory, and the Self

Recent work in psychology and neuroscience emphasizes the narrative quality of the self, as we create it and recreate it through language and writing, shaping memories both personal and historical. This process is circular: we grow into the stories we tell about ourselves, and we tell different stories to fit our changing life experiences. What is the self in the midst of all this? How does it relate to other selves and to the world? This course examines the nature of self, combining the insights of fiction writers (including Luigi Pirandello, Anna Banti, Michel Tournier, Alain Robbe-Grillet, Peter Nádas) with works from philosophy, psychology, medical humanities, and neuroscience (including Edith Wyschogrod, Alexander Nehamas, Ruth Leys, Oliver Sacks). Taught in English.