With each day-to-day mundanity, she asks us to reconsider how capitalism as a culture has changed the way we value work and worth, art and medicine, care and the purpose of our jobs. The excerpts she read highlighted the ways in which capitalism seeps into every part of our lives-from the trading of Pokémon cards on the asphalt of a children’s playground to Scooby-Doo villains to peaches and Monopoly. The virtual event took place on Zoom, with participants of all ages from all over the country tuning in.ĭuring the first hour of the event, Biss read excerpts from Having and Being Had as a way to explore the pressures capitalism has put on the work of medical professionals, artists and the quantification of the value of work as a whole.

The event was split into three segments-the first being a reading and talk about her new book, the second being a discussion between novelist and Medical Humanities and Ethics lecturer Nellie Herman and Biss, and the third being a chance for audience members to ask Biss questions of their own. On Wednesday, Columbia Narrative Medicine hosted a discussion with writer Eula Biss on her new book, Having and Being Had.

In this October Virtual Narrative Medicine Rounds event, we had the opportunity to hear from Eula Biss herself, this time exploring the pervasive nature of capitalism and its effects on our lives and health. In University Writing: Readings in Medical Humanities last fall, some sections had the chance to read, discuss, and respond to “Sentimental Medicine,” a thought-provoking essay by Eula Biss.

Eula biss having and being had