Autobiographies by Acid-Attack Survivors: A Bibliotherapeutic Tool in the Field of Medical Humanities

Abstract

The education system has evolved through various discipline-wise segregation and policies over the years. The Ancient Greek and Roman civilisations practised a holistic knowledge system that merged the arts and sciences for the overall development of a child, similar to ancient Indian learning. After the European scientific revolution, the education system underwent strict division for pursuing various streams of knowledge. The re-emergence of multidisciplinary studies circles back to the chances of a comprehensive development. Medical Humanities is one such emerging field that has the potential of providing empathetic perspectives to medical treatment and healing. The nature of illness is usually a physio-psychological natural process; but how would we address the cases of health repercussions incurred by unjust acts of violence? Acid attacks are classic examples of such coerced illnesses, which devastate the lives of the victims for eternity. The study explores the Autobiographies: Beautiful (2011) by Katie Piper and Being Reshma: The Extraordinary Story of an Acid-Attack Survivor Who Took the World by Storm (2018) by Reshma Qureshi and Tania Singh to analyse the situation of acid-attack survivors and their treatment in the purview of medical sciences. Medical colleges abroad have introduced humanities and social sciences subjects like psychology, sociology or literature, however, a similar practice in the Indian context seems scant. The introduction of autobiographical works in the medical curriculum through ‘bibliotherapy’ can work as a tool for the knowledge enhancement of the medical practitioners inculcating values like empathy and care, and healing of the patients through courage and emotional motivation.