ENGL 2212 Introduction to Medical Humanities
This course will use contemporary literature as a springboard to consider the psychological, social, ethical, and experiential dimensions of sickness and health. In addition to exploring questions of illness and the body, we will address topics including disability, aging, pregnancy, pain, medical space, illness and culture, and care giving. Through the analysis of novels, poems, short stories and non-fiction, we will consider the way that bodily experiences, material conditions, and cultural constructions of normalcy shape our understanding of identity in sickness and in health.
Course overview
- Department
- English
- School
- MCAS
- Credits
- 3
- Level
- Undergraduate
- Offered
- Every Fall, Every Spring
Requirements fulfilled
- Environmental Studies: Concentration — Environmental Health: One History Course (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
- English: Earlier literatures in English: eighteenth- or nineteenth-century literature, 1700-1900 (one course, 3 credits) (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
- English: Earlier literatures in English: medieval or early-modern literature, before 1700 (one course, 3 credits) (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
- English: Major electives (five courses, 15 credits) from department offerings (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
- English: Race, Blackness, and Language requirement (one course) (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
- Humanities, Health, and Culture: Minor Requirements (Current University Catalog; students should confirm their catalog year)
Course evaluations
- Course rating
- 4.50 / 5 · Excellent
- Instructor rating
- 4.52 / 5 · Excellent
- Terms evaluated
- 10
| Term | Instructor | Course overall | Instructor overall | Well organized | Clear learning objectives | Intellectually challenging | Helpful assignments | Applicable beyond course | Attendance necessary | Weekly effort | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2026 | Jean Franzino | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4–6 hrs/week | 20 of 23 |
| Fall 2025 | Amy Boesky | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 1–3 hrs/week | 23 of 25 |
| Fall 2025 | Krithika Vachali | 4.1 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 23 of 24 |
| Spring 2025 | Krithika Vachali | 3.6 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 4–6 hrs/week | 23 of 24 |
| Fall 2024 | Amy Boesky | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 4.7 | 4–6 hrs/week | 21 of 23 |
| Fall 2024 | Jean Franzino | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 22 of 25 |
| Spring 2024 | Clare Dunsford | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4–6 hrs/week | 21 of 25 |
| Spring 2024 | Jean Franzino | 4.7 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4–6 hrs/week | 22 of 25 |
| Fall 2023 | Amy Boesky | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 22 of 25 |
| Fall 2023 | Treseanne Ainsworth | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 19 of 24 |
| Spring 2023 | Jean Franzino | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4–6 hrs/week | 24 of 25 |
| Spring 2023 | Treseanne Ainsworth | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4–6 hrs/week | 17 of 22 |
| Fall 2022 | Jean Franzino | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 17 of 19 |
| Fall 2022 | Laura Tanner | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.8 | — | 17 of 20 |
| Spring 2022 | Amy Boesky | 4.9 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 4.7 | 4–6 hrs/week | 20 of 24 |
| Spring 2022 | Jean Franzino | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 4.3 | 1–3 hrs/week | 13 of 24 |
| Fall 2021 | Clare Dunsford | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4–6 hrs/week | 13 of 25 |
| Fall 2021 | Laura Tanner | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4–6 hrs/week | 21 of 23 |
Data freshness
Instructors
Sections
- Section 01
- Section 01
- Section 02