Infertility Comics and Graphic Medicine

Area of Science:

• Medical Sociology
• Graphic Medicine
• Cultural Studies

Background:

• Societies often associate womanhood with childbearing, leading to stigma for those with infertility.
• Infertility, though a gender-neutral condition, disproportionately affects women, causing social abjuration and psychological distress.
• Pronatalist cultural norms exacerbate the suffering of individuals experiencing infertility, impacting their sense of self.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze how graphic pathographies address the social construction of motherhood and infertility.
• To explore the role of scientific absolutism in the experience of infertility.
• To examine alternative perspectives to motherhood presented in graphic narratives of infertility.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of three graphic pathographies: "The Facts of Life" (Knight, 2017), "Broken Eggs" (Steinberg, 2014), and "Good Eggs" (Potts, 2010).
• Thematic exploration focusing on pronatalism, the social construction of motherhood, scientific absolutism, and alternatives to motherhood.
• Examination of how the visual and textual elements of graphic medicine convey the complexities of infertility.

Main Results:

• Graphic narratives illuminate the profound impact of pronatalist societal expectations on women with infertility.
• These works critique the limitations of scientific perspectives in addressing the holistic experience of infertility.
• The analyzed texts offer insights into diverse identities and life choices beyond traditional motherhood.

Conclusions:

• Graphic medicine provides a powerful medium for exploring the multifaceted nature of infertility, integrating personal, social, and medical dimensions.
• The visual and narrative techniques in graphic pathographies enhance understanding and urgency surrounding infertility experiences.
• These narratives challenge stigma and offer validation for individuals navigating infertility in a pronatalist society.