Agora Magazine
NYU Grossman School of Medicine Arts and Literary Publication
Agora Magazine is a public place for articulating literary, audible, and visual arts to consider the humanistic elements of medicine and healthcare; to develop empathy for people with different experiences and perspectives; to reflect on experiences caring for others; and to evolve our personal and professional identities as they intersect with our time, place, and community.
Alyssa Pullano Reach
Our Fall 2024 submission portal is now open! Please read our full theme statement and see FAQs page for more information.
In the mid-20th century, psychologists Joan and Erik Erickson proposed a theory of psychosocial development that outlined eight distinct stages of life, each stage having a central conflict, the resolution of which would set the stage for the next phase of life. However, experience proves that our lives often cannot be subdivided into neat stages, and that each season grants us the opportunity to reflect on our legacy as it is and as we want it to be. In the next issue of Agora, we hope to explore the legacies that we carry as we move through life. What meaning do you find in the legacies of the people who came before you? What experiences have shaped your dreams into something uniquely your own, and how has that changed over the course of your life? What do you hope survives of you, beyond you?
We hope you’ll consider submitting a piece for consideration at bit.ly/agorafall2024.
In May 2023, Dr. Vivek Murthy—United States Surgeon General and renowned physician-researcher—released a new advisory declaring loneliness a new public health epidemic and calling for a nationwide effort to strengthen the social fabric of our lives. Loneliness can no longer be conceived of as a transient or marginalized experience but rather as a visibly entrenched part of modern life with profound consequences for both physical and mental health. As Dr. Murthy so passionately advocates, connection must be the bedrock of reform, and it is only in naming and bringing the human condition of loneliness out into the open – into active and actionable dialogue – that we can begin repairing, rebuilding, and ultimately reconnecting.
In this issue of Agora, we hope to respond to this call for “connection” by reflecting on and examining the lived epidemic of loneliness among students, patients, caregivers, healthcare systems, communities, and institutions. Understanding that "connection" is a complex, multifaceted experience, we chose to focus on isolation and aloneness in Fall 2023 and companionship and community during Spring 2024.
Notes on 2023-2024 edition theme:
Featured pieces that aligned with the 2023-2024 theme were selected for publication.
Please enjoy the virtual copy of the magazine to the right and view the rest of this page for links to see other visual, literary, and mixed medium pieces published on the website.
Featured visual pieces
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Heather Brody, Confinement
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Karl L. Sangwon, Literature
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Emily Bi, A1c
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Batán Silva, Stroke
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Arnaud Brohe, The Dock
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Francine Blei, Connections
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Kendra Ray, Nature knows love
