Time and subjectivity in contemporary short fiction

The aesthetics of contemporary short fiction have been shaped by its ability to engage with time as a boundless process of becoming. Historically and philosophically, the emergence of the short story as a specific genre may be related to modernist concepts of time and subjectivity. 'Real' time, as it is experienced by the subject, is a flux, in which past and present co-mingle. In Bergsonian terms, an unquantifiable 'duration' 1S contrasted with Newtonian concepts of absolute time as a succession of discrete units. As Hanson has argued, narrative in the short story 1S structured by a seemingly random association of 1mages rather than linear causality. I contextualize the short story genre, historically and culturally, examining texts by George Egerton and Katherine Mansfield before moving on to the main focus of my thesis, which is texts by Alice Munro and Grace Paley. These also present a dynamic reality, within time as a continuum. However, while utilizing modernist techniques, they also subvert them, problematizing concepts of transcendence. The blurring of the boundaries between autobiographical discourse, orality and fiction is used to destabilize notions of a unified subjectivity and of fixed truth. My analysis applies Bakhtinian theories on language and subject formation to investigate this presentation of time as endless self-renewal. I also draw on Genette's narrative theory and introduce Kristevan theory to investigate the speaking subject from a psychoanalytical viewpoint, with particular reference to the gendered subject. The Bakhtinian concept of the chronotope enables the theorization of the space-time nexus as the foundation of generic specificity; I offer a generic chronotope for the short story, which is grounded in the present moment. An examination of the fiction-making process, through a discussion of my own short stories, concludes this discussion of the short story as a form of contact with undefinable reality

Loose Canons: Reader, Authors and Consumption in Helen Simpson’s “The Festival of the Immortals”

La nouvelle « The Festival of the Immortals » de Helen Simpson propose une représentation satirique du phénomène anglais actuel de l’événement littéraire. Cette nouvelle met en scène un festival littéraire où des auteurs canoniques reviennent de l'au-delà pour parler de leurs écrits. L'ironie de Simpson se trouve néanmoins atténuée par le portrait touchant de deux femmes âgées qui sont des adeptes de ce genre d’événement culturel. En effet, ces femmes adhèrent au culte de l’auteur et expriment une affection particulière pour l’acte de lecture. Cet article met la théorie de Bakhtine au service d’une étude de l’ambivalence que démontre Simpson envers les formes publiques de consommation littéraire, un thème récurrent dans l’œuvre de Simpson. Dans cette nouvelle et ailleurs, Simpson aborde la question de la marginalisation de l’expérience féminine et la difficulté des femmes à faire entendre leur voix. Le concept d’«idioculture» emprunté à Derek Attridge permettra de comprendre comment le lien étroit entre lecture et écriture permet d’aborder l’altérité, et justifiera la légitimité d’une lecture des textes à travers le prisme d’un auteur imaginé par le lecteur

Helen Simpson’s “Opera”

Cet article propose une lecture attentive d’une nouvelle de l’auteur britannique, Helen Simpson, et allie une étude de la théâtralité au sein de la technique narrative avec une exploration d’un lien intertextuel avec l’opéra de Glück, Orfeo. L’article commence par une brève exposition de l’utilisation de la théâtralité dans l’œuvre de Simpson avant d’aborder de manière plus précise le caractère dense de la structure dramatique et l’étude des personnages à travers de longs passages de discours direct. L’article aborde également l’influence de la comédie anglaise de la période de la Restauration, évoquant en particulier la parodie et la satire sociale. Par la suite, l’article explore les motifs de la parole et du silence dans le texte en s’inspirant des lectures de la légende d’Orphée que propose Julia Kristeva. La musique de Glück évoque des sentiments complexes de la tragédie et de la perte irrévocable que ne peuvent exprimer les mots. De la même manière, Simpson donne à sa nouvelle une fin indéterminée, employant des images mythiques afin de s’éloigner du domaine de la comédie sociale pour se rapprocher d’un domaine plus liminal

Nutrition and frailty:Opportunities for prevention and treatment

Frailty is a syndrome of growing importance given the global ageing population. While frailty is a multifactorial process, poor nutritional status is considered a key contributor to its pathophysiology. As nutrition is a modifiable risk factor for frailty, strategies to prevent and treat frailty should consider dietary change. Observational evidence linking nutrition with frailty appears most robust for dietary quality: for example, dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean diet appear to be protective. In addition, research on specific foods, such as a higher consumption of fruit and vegetables and lower consumption of ultra-processed foods are consistent, with healthier profiles linked to lower frailty risk. Few dietary intervention studies have been conducted to date, although a growing number of trials that combine supplementation with exercise training suggest a multi-domain approach may be more effective. This review is based on an interdisciplinary workshop, held in November 2020, and synthesises current understanding of dietary influences on frailty, focusing on opportunities for prevention and treatment. Longer term prospective studies and well-designed trials are needed to determine the causal effects of nutrition on frailty risk and progression and how dietary change can be used to prevent and/or treat frailty in the future

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Case Reports1. A Late Presentation of Loeys-Dietz Syndrome: Beware of TGFβ Receptor Mutations in Benign Joint Hypermobility

Background: Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA) and dissections are not uncommon causes of sudden death in young adults. Loeys-Dietz syndrome (LDS) is a rare, recently described, autosomal dominant, connective tissue disease characterized by aggressive arterial aneurysms, resulting from mutations in the transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) receptor genes TGFBR1 and TGFBR2. Mean age at death is 26.1 years, most often due to aortic dissection. We report an unusually late presentation of LDS, diagnosed following elective surgery in a female with a long history of joint hypermobility. Methods: A 51-year-old Caucasian lady complained of chest pain and headache following a dural leak from spinal anaesthesia for an elective ankle arthroscopy. CT scan and echocardiography demonstrated a dilated aortic root and significant aortic regurgitation. MRA demonstrated aortic tortuosity, an infrarenal aortic aneurysm and aneurysms in the left renal and right internal mammary arteries. She underwent aortic root repair and aortic valve replacement. She had a background of long-standing joint pains secondary to hypermobility, easy bruising, unusual fracture susceptibility and mild bronchiectasis. She had one healthy child age 32, after which she suffered a uterine prolapse. Examination revealed mild Marfanoid features. Uvula, skin and ophthalmological examination was normal. Results: Fibrillin-1 testing for Marfan syndrome (MFS) was negative. Detection of a c.1270G > C (p.Gly424Arg) TGFBR2 mutation confirmed the diagnosis of LDS. Losartan was started for vascular protection. Conclusions: LDS is a severe inherited vasculopathy that usually presents in childhood. It is characterized by aortic root dilatation and ascending aneurysms. There is a higher risk of aortic dissection compared with MFS. Clinical features overlap with MFS and Ehlers Danlos syndrome Type IV, but differentiating dysmorphogenic features include ocular hypertelorism, bifid uvula and cleft palate. Echocardiography and MRA or CT scanning from head to pelvis is recommended to establish the extent of vascular involvement. Management involves early surgical intervention, including early valve-sparing aortic root replacement, genetic counselling and close monitoring in pregnancy. Despite being caused by loss of function mutations in either TGFβ receptor, paradoxical activation of TGFβ signalling is seen, suggesting that TGFβ antagonism may confer disease modifying effects similar to those observed in MFS. TGFβ antagonism can be achieved with angiotensin antagonists, such as Losartan, which is able to delay aortic aneurysm development in preclinical models and in patients with MFS. Our case emphasizes the importance of timely recognition of vasculopathy syndromes in patients with hypermobility and the need for early surgical intervention. It also highlights their heterogeneity and the potential for late presentation. Disclosures: The authors have declared no conflicts of interes