ABSTRACT
The shelves of libraries and book stores, newspapers and magazines, television, film, and Internet Web sites all give evidence of the popularity of illness narratives. Some stories are autobiographical book or film-length accounts; others are shorter and more informally told. Illness narratives serve varied purposes for authors and auditors, from personal to political. Stories constructed by ill persons reveal not only their physical and emotional concerns but also their communication with caretakers and families, with health providers and organizations, and with public acceptance or rejection of their illness status. They provide catharsis, testimony, identity restructuring, and the ability to connect to others. Such stories are an integral part of the process of constructing new identities in the face of life changes or physical and mental dysfunctions (Frank, 1995).
