Josephine Balfour-Oatts

About Josephine’s Research:

Many affected by eating disorders turn to literature for reflections of, and to give shape to, their experiences. Literary depictions of eating disorders, and anorexia specifically, in popular novels, however, generally adopt familiar narrative structures – e.g., linear/causal emplotment, character/narrative ‘arcs’, conclusive/‘satisfying’ resolutions – structures that seem at odds with the complex realities described by eating disorder researchers and those experiencing/recovering from anorexia. In so doing, are these novels risking reproducing and reinforcing common misconceptions about anorexia recovery trajectories, potentially exacerbating well-reported disconnections between public beliefs and lived realities?

Whilst similar disconnections between typical novel structures and lived experiences have been studied regarding illness and trauma, no work addresses these discrepancies for eating disorders like anorexia, nor have researchers explored whether the shapes of non-traditional or ‘experimental’ prose writings may bridge this divide, offering alternative models for anorexia literature and potentially enriching bibliotherapeutic practices.

Guided by UoEdinburgh’s cross-departmental academic team and experts from Scotland’s leading eating disorder charity, SupportED, this project supports a PhD Researcher with lived experience expertise to develop innovative transdisciplinary, creative and participatory methods, hands-on experience, and intra- and extra-academic networks to produce a unique English Literature PhD thesis and develop as a leader in this urgent field.