Anne Fenoy

Please tell us about your research project.
I'm a fourth-year PhD student in philosophy of medicine at Sorbonne University, in the Sciences, Norms, Democracy (SND) laboratory (UMR 8011). I work under the supervision of Dr. Cédric Paternotte and Prof. Danielle Seilhean.  The Initiative Humanités Biomédicales of Sorbonne Université granted me funding during three years. My 4th year is funded by the FilSLAN rare diseases health network. My work focuses on the different representations of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and the possible conflicts between these representations. ALS is a serious neurodegenerative disease, in which both central and peripheral motor neurons are affected, leading to progressive paralysis and death.

Could you please tell us a bit more about your scholarship/exchange programme?
I am the 2023 winner of the Maison française d'Oxford scholarship, thanks to the Chancellerie des Universités de Paris, which allows me to live at the MFO and be an academic visitor at Oxford University for six months. It's a wonderful opportunity to enhance my work at Oxford University and to learn from the different biomedical humanities practices here.

First impressions of Oxford/the University?
It's very impressive to stay in Oxford. I was here two years ago, but the impression remains. I always think of Thomas Willis, who was appointed Professor of Natural Philosophy at Oxford University in 1660. I imagine myself crossing the same street as him! What's more, Oxford is like an open-air university. It's very calming to work here. A perfect setting to finish writing my thesis and to work on my thesis defence!