At the next UNC Charlotte Personally Speaking series talk Tuesday, March 28, UNC Charlotte expert Christine S. Davis will consider how ideas of death are constructed, using narratives drawn from real life and fiction.
Davis will turn to research from her book “End of Life Communication: Stories from the Dead Zone,” which she co-authored with retired UNC Charlotte Professor Jonathan L. Crane. Using a medical humanities narrative approach, Davis considers how ideas about death are constructed through films and in a hospital setting, and how the arts inform medical ethics and care.
The 7 p.m. talk and reception at 6 p.m. are open to the public at no charge, but reservations are requested. Davis will answer questions about her research and her book, published by Routledge Press. Books will be available for sale at the event, at Byron’s South End, 180 W. Worthington Ave.
Davis, a Charlotte emeritus professor of communication studies, has written many books and journal articles about end-of-life communication and has been trained as an end-of-life doula. During her career, she has taught courses in health and medical humanities, end-of-life communication, health care narratives, body politics, gerontology and research methods.
She studies people with illnesses and conditions that are incurable as they face revisions in their personal identity and narrative and negotiate the liminal spaces between “well and unwell,” alive and dead, and power and marginalization.
Personally Speaking published experts series events are hosted by the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, with The Dubois Center at UNC Charlotte Center City and J. Murrey Atkins Library. During these community talks, CLAS faculty engage audiences in conversation about their research findings and describe the personal motivations for writing their books. The presentation may be recorded.
The event venue for this talk is across from the Blue Lynx light rail East/West Blvd. station. For those driving, the venue will validate your ticket from the Design Center Parking Garage, located at the corner of Hawkins and Doggett streets.