English 1121 - Medical Patient Synthesis Essay

English 1121: College Writing and Critical Reading

Spring 2004 / Section 13

Paper #2 -- Medical Patient Synthesis Essay

Reading Assignments:

Joan Didion, “In Bed”
Nancy Mairs, “On Being a Cripple”
Five (5) or more sources obtained through research

Writing Assignment:

Write an essay of similar length to the first essay – at least three (3) full pages but no more than six (6) full pages – in which you analyze and synthesize, using comparison and contrast, the autobiographical writing of at least five (5) different patients who suffer from or have recovered from the same medical disease, symptom, condition, disability, etc., and have then written about their experiences. To make it more interesting for you, choose your medical focus based on your own medical and personal interests or concerns. For example, if you are interested in breast cancer, find some autobiographical essays from at least five breast cancer patients or survivors. Or, if you are interested in post-traumatic stress disorder, find at least five autobiographical essays written by people afflicted with this disorder. Finally, if you are intrigued by electro-shock therapies, try to find at least five people who had this kind of treatment and then wrote about their experiences.

You will need to do some research to find your sources. In some cases, there may be anthologies (collections of essays) out there that focus on one specific medical condition, such as breast cancer; however, you may use only two (2) essays from the same “larger” source (a book, a website, etc.). In addition to anthologies, there are many other places to look. Your best bet may be to try the magazine and/or the health index on WebPALS and/or MnLINK. The third possibility is the web/internet; in this case, however, be sure the sources you pick come from credible websites, possibly websites created by a specific patient group or a non-profit organization – you may use only one (1) source published on a “personal” page on the web/internet due to possible “credential problems.” Wherever you end up finding your sources, be sure they are autobiographical essays written by the patients themselves; they cannot be fictional narratives or biographical narratives written by family members. Be sure to print and save copies of your sources!

Once you have found your five (5) autobiographical essays by five different writers, read them carefully and begin to analyze and synthesize them using comparison and contrast. Remember: information about critical reading, summary, analysis, and synthesis can be found in chapter 1 of the NCH. Consider the following questions as you read and prepare to write your own essay:

How are the writers’ experiences similar? How are the writers’ experiences different? If possible, look at the different “stages” of their experience – e.g. symptoms, tests, diagnosis, treatment, etc.
How do the writers write about their doctors? Their nurses? Their surroundings (while in a hospital or other treatment center)? Other patients? Their family and friends? Themselves?
If there are more differences than similarities in their accounts, how do you account for these differences?
Do the writers tend to use similar words, descriptions, comparisons, images, etc. to convey their experiences? How do their writing styles and tones compare and contrast?

Formatting Requirements:

Your essay should be at least three (3) pages but no longer than six (6) pages -- the "works cited" page is not included in this page count. Double-space and word-process your paper using 1.0-1.25” margins, and a 12-point “normal” font (Times New Roman or Arial). No title page is needed; put your name, the course, my name, and the date in the upper left-hand corner of the first page (see BNCH pp. 44-48 for a picture of what the format should look like).