The merits of context: Unfolding mental vulnerability as category and experience
Dados Bibliográficos
| AUTOR(ES) | |
|---|---|
| AFILIAÇÃO(ÕES) | Department of Philosophy and History of Ideas, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark |
| ANO | 2022 |
| TIPO | Artigo |
| PERIÓDICO | Ethnography |
| ISSN | 1466-1381 |
| E-ISSN | 1741-2714 |
| EDITORA | Annual Reviews (United States) |
| DOI | 10.1177/1466138120940757 |
| CITAÇÕES | 2 |
| ADICIONADO EM | 2025-08-18 |
Resumo
'Mentally vulnerable' young people are a strong focal point in public debate and policy in Denmark at present, and a variety of cultural activities are now being offered to them. Building on ethnographic fieldwork (April 2018-August 2019) with so-called mentally vulnerable young women (aged 18-36) who meet in literature reading groups, this article seeks to connect the reading group with the phenomenon of 'mental vulnerability', first through a review of the historical emergence and contemporary use of the term, and second by considering what (painful) experiences the term signifies for individuals belonging to this category. This contextualization involves a discussion of literature on the role of context in anthropological analyses. The article concludes with an empirical contradiction: the reading group provides a sanctuary from everyday demands for purposefulness and productivity, but it can also be used as a strategy for navigating such demands.