Abstract
As a peculiar condition affecting the body or mind, illness is an inescapable aspect of human existence. While intimately connected to the body, it does not belong solely to the domain of natural science. Instead, illness is a phenomenon inherently embedded in power relations and cannot be understood without the influence of external factors such as politics, religion, ideology, and economics. In Alejandro Morales’s historical novel The Rag Doll Plagues, the diachronic histories of different geographic spaces intersect synchronically due to the pervasive presence of human disease. Morales invites readers to explore the interplay between illness— particularly epidemic and pandemic diseases—and human behavior. By exposing the cultural divergence between Western modern medicine and curanderismo through racial, political, and economic dimensions, the novel reveals implicit racial discrimination within the framework of medical ethics and seeks inspiration for the future of humanity. Furthermore, Morales turns to the holistic principles of curanderismo as a potential approach, advocating for the harmonious integration of body and mind, as well as of mainstream and ethnic minorities, to achieve a balance between scientific rationality and humanistic care.
Recommended Citation
Xu, Qianqian and Li, Baojie
(2025)
"Towards a Trans-ethnic Representation of Survival: Illness and Medical
Writing in The Rag Doll Plagues,"
Kritika Kultura:
No.
48, Article 7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.13185/1656-152X.2203
Available at:
https://archium.ateneo.edu/kk/vol1/iss48/7
