Commodifying Caritas: Pink Ribbons are not Care for the Sick
Nancy Romer, M.D., MA, Ph.D. Student, University of Dayton
This paper looks at breast cancer culture in the United States with a critical eye on its influence over women’s attitudes towards breast cancer in particular, and larger society’s approach to suffering in general. I will then critique it as a form of care of the sick, and suggest that a Christian theology of suffering and care for the sick produces a culture that may be more helpful for breast cancer patients in particular and those who are suffering in general.
I will use Samantha King's “Pink Ribbon, Inc.” and Gayle Sulik’s “Pink Ribbon Blues” to explore breast cancer culture in the United States. Samantha King uses a Foucauldian critique of neo-liberal society as a model for her critique of breast cancer philanthropy. Whereas she is critical of corporate philanthropy as a substitute for citizenship, I will show it is an inadequate substitute for Christian caritas. Gayle A. Sulik’s criticism of breast cancer culture in “Pink Ribbon Blues” reveals how women’s health is actually adversely affected by the emphasis on breast cancer to the detriment of other women’s health issues. The she-ro narrative that this culture produces is one that not all women share and leaves many women to suffer alone. These writers will help us see breast cancer as a culture that has permeated our lives in ways we are unaware of. The results are not what were intended and are often detrimental to the health and well-being of the women they are intended to help.
Attention to scripture and theology will provide a different approach to suffering; an approach that inscribes a different culture. Through the work of theologians Vigen Guroian, Stanley Hauerwas, John Swinton, and others I will explore a Christian approach to illness and suffering that expresses true caritas.
This Christian theology, in a rejection of theodicy, does not offer the explanation of evil and illness that post-moderns seek, but situates illness within the Paschal mystery of the suffering of Jesus of Nazareth. This theology calls Christians to care for the sick in ways that are much different from the current breast cancer culture. It is a theology that calls us to do more than just wear ribbons, smile and project a positive attitude but instead demands that we stand with the suffering and help them negotiate their journey. This is the true meaning of caritas.
This paper looks at breast cancer culture in the United States with a critical eye on its influence over women’s attitudes towards breast cancer in particular, and larger society’s approach to suffering in general. I will then critique it as a form of care of the sick, and suggest that a Christian theology of suffering and care for the sick produces a culture that may be more helpful for breast cancer patients in particular and those who are suffering in general.
I will use Samantha King's “Pink Ribbon, Inc.” and Gayle Sulik’s “Pink Ribbon Blues” to explore breast cancer culture in the United States. Samantha King uses a Foucauldian critique of neo-liberal society as a model for her critique of breast cancer philanthropy. Whereas she is critical of corporate philanthropy as a substitute for citizenship, I will show it is an inadequate substitute for Christian caritas. Gayle A. Sulik’s criticism of breast cancer culture in “Pink Ribbon Blues” reveals how women’s health is actually adversely affected by the emphasis on breast cancer to the detriment of other women’s health issues. The she-ro narrative that this culture produces is one that not all women share and leaves many women to suffer alone. These writers will help us see breast cancer as a culture that has permeated our lives in ways we are unaware of. The results are not what were intended and are often detrimental to the health and well-being of the women they are intended to help.
Attention to scripture and theology will provide a different approach to suffering; an approach that inscribes a different culture. Through the work of theologians Vigen Guroian, Stanley Hauerwas, John Swinton, and others I will explore a Christian approach to illness and suffering that expresses true caritas.
This Christian theology, in a rejection of theodicy, does not offer the explanation of evil and illness that post-moderns seek, but situates illness within the Paschal mystery of the suffering of Jesus of Nazareth. This theology calls Christians to care for the sick in ways that are much different from the current breast cancer culture. It is a theology that calls us to do more than just wear ribbons, smile and project a positive attitude but instead demands that we stand with the suffering and help them negotiate their journey. This is the true meaning of caritas.