Hallwalls is the perfect setting for a sixth year of the Humanities Institute's Scholars@Hallwalls lecture series. These monthly presentations feature one fellow's research in an engaging lecture with lively follow-up conversation. This year's lineup highlights the interdisciplinary range of humanities research at UB.
Talks are on Friday afternoons at 4 pm and are free and open to the public. Complimentary wine and hors d'oeuvres are served. Please join us for any or all of the Scholars@Hallwalls talks!
'Girls Invade, Shrinks in Trauma': Feminism and the Politics of Psychiatric Diagnosis, 1970-1990
Historian Susan Cahn opens our series with her talk titled “‘Girls Invade, Shrinks in Trauma’: Feminism and the Politics of Psychiatric Diagnosis, 1970-1990.” By examining the struggle between second-wave feminists and the psychiatric establishment, Cahn investigates the history and politics of medical diagnoses. She looks at the American Psychiatric Association’s revision of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual as a point of gendered conflict, examining in particular the construction of Borderline Personality Disorder. Was it coincidental that women’s anger and sexual desire—claimed proudly by feminists—became key symptoms of illness in “borderline” women?
