Events
The Maine Humanities Council periodically organizes conferences to bring the literature and medicine community together. Conferences include “After Shock: Humanities Perspectives on Trauma” (November 2010) and “Caring for the Caregiver,” held in 2007.
MHC also offers Literature & Medicine institutes and trainings to provide a thorough introduction to the program, its goals, and the nuts & bolts of organizing it. These are open to anyone interested in learning more, and are required for those new to organizing or facilitating the program.
Special Event: Innovative Reader’s Theater Coming to Maine
Outside the Wire's Bryan Doerries facilitating a discussion as part of “Theater of War” at Literature & Medicine’s recent After Shock Conference.
Literature & Medicine brought Outside the Wire to Maine.
Outside the Wire, is an innovative, nationally acclaimed reader’s theater troupe that presents readings of powerful literary works to spark community dialogue about pressing public issues.
The performances delivered on their promise to be riveting. More than that, they also began important public conversations about issues related to the end of life and to the effects of combat on soldiers.
Outside the Wire will present two different programs:
- “End of Life” in Portland and Bangor, October 18 & 20
- “Theater of War” in Augusta, October 19
After viewing “Theater of War” at L&M’s recent conference, one participant wrote:
“Theater of War...was a moving, engaging experience... I am still reeling from the maelstrom it stirred up.”
Conferences
The Literature & Medicine program occasionally offers conferences, dependent on funding. There are no conferences scheduled at this time.
Our most recent conference, After Shock: Humanities Perspectives on Trauma, was held November 12 & 13, 2010 in Washington, D.C. The conference focused on supporting health care professionals by helping them discover the power of the humanities to provide new insights into trauma’s effects on their patients—and to sustain them in their work.
The goal of the conference is to introduce a range of humanities programs, including Literature & Medicine, that can be used to support health care professionals who are caring for patients who have undergone trauma, in particular combat trauma, and who may have vicariously or directly experienced trauma themselves. Our keynote speaker, Jonathan Shay, M.D., [bio] former VA psychiatrist and MacArthur “Genius” Award-winning author, epitomizes this approach. Shay’s books about his work with Vietnam veterans demonstrate the continuing relevance of ancient texts to our understanding of war and its costs to our warriors. In Achilles in Vietnam and Odysseus in America: Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming, Shay weaves together contemporary experience and thousand-year-old stories to illuminate issues of trauma and recovery, anger and betrayal and the difficulties of homecoming. These books, and their sources, are used frequently in Literature & Medicine, and have been invaluable in helping health care providers better understand and treat the psychic wounds that many of their patients have suffered.
In addition to Dr. Shay’s keynote, we will have other plenary speakers and a wide variety of smaller, interactive breakout sessions TBA.
Training
Trainings are typically offered once a year or once every other year, dependent on funding. A special training was held Nov. 11, 2010 in Washington, D.C. held in conjunction with the conference, After Shock: Humanities Perspectives on Trauma. There are no further trainings scheduled at this time. Please contact Lizz Sinclair if you are interested in a training or have questions.
Podcasts
Podcasts of the plenary talks given by Dr. Jonathan Shay, Rev. Kate Braestrup, and Tim O’Brien at After Shock: Humanities Perspectives on Trauma, the Literature & Medicine program’s second national conference (held Nov 12 & 13, 2010) will be available by early December, 2010.
Hear talks and presentations by four leaders in the literature and medicine movement—Veneta Masson, Rita Charon, Judy Schaefer and Rafael Campo—given at Literature & Medicine’s first national conference, Caring for the Caregiver: Perspectives in Literature and Medicine, November 2007.
