How care holds humanity: the myth of Cura and theories of care

Abstract

Modern medicine has often struggled to grasp the cultural aspects of interpersonal care. The medical humanities, on the other hand, have struggled to grasp the embodied, intimate character of care. In a recent appeal to the medical humanities, Julia Kristeva et al argue that care can be a point of crossing between these two ‘ontological domains’. They evoke the myth of Cura, referring to previous utilisations by such diverse thinkers as Heidegger and Kleinman, as well as Kristeva’s previous work. This study adds to these bodies of work by using the original text from Hyginus in much greater detail. Textual analysis, theoretical discussions and autotheoretical work unpack care as (1) a fundamental aspect of the human condition, (2) a holding-together of different domains of knowledge, (3) a withholding from these domains and (4) the site of intimate knowledge that both ‘ontological domains’ struggle to grasp.

World Health Organization myth busters and indigenous perceptions of COVID-19: Quechua and Shipibo communities

“…On the one hand, as much work in medical humanities has shown, the terminology associated with illness/disease is culturally specific/indexing (cf. ( Juda and Goddard, 2021 ) Juda 2021) and perhaps ought to be revised altogether (as argued in ( Kristeva et al, 2018 ) Kristeva et al, 2019 ( Hanisch, 2022 ), Hanisch, 2022 ). On the other hand, the belief systems of communities (as wholes and as sets of individual members), viz-a-viz the producers of messages about epidemics as well as their translators, have not typically aligned; COVID-19 pandemic has been no different in this regard.…”

“…And finally, though perhaps more importantly, the myth(o)s related to the disease itself (and, thus, its (in)curabiltiy and prevention) and the rejection of such myths—i.e. ‘myth-busting’ more generally (( Kristeva et al, 2018 ) Kristeva et al, 2019 ( Hanisch, 2022 ), Hanisch, 2022 )—bears revisiting. As ( Martimianakis et al, 2020 ) Martimianakis et al (2019) and argue, myths (from the Greek mythos and directly related to the origin story of the people ( Brown and Nestel, 2020 ), Brown and Nestel 2019), serve as (a) shared meaning making, (b) a vehicle for values and ideologies, and (c) a means of maintaining social power structures.…”

Feminist Care Ethics Confronts Mainstream Philosophy

“…The Goddess both creates humanity and must care for it. Literary scholar Halver Hanisch finds one of the points of the Fables of Hyginus being "the ontological role of care in human life" [2]. Soren Kierkegaard addresses care in terms of "concern" to discuss existential reality without the categorical and abstract methods found in the philosophical tradition [3].…”