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Sir Paul Nurse’s geneticist’s tales

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This study examines the autobiographical narrative of the Nobel Prize-winning geneticist Sir Paul Nurse, to explore the intersection of genetics, identity, and familial secrecy. Employing a structuralist-folkloric framework rooted in Vladimir Propp’s morphology and the Aarne-Thompson-Uther classification, alongside psychoanalytic theories from Carl Jung and Julia Kristeva,the analysis traces Nurse’s journey from perceived familial difference to the revelation of his illegitimacy and concealed maternity. The narrative parallels folktale motifs, such as ATU 926 ("Judgment of Solomon") and ATU 930B ("The Predestined Wife"), while engaging themes of recognition (Aristotle’s anagnorisis), revolt (Kristeva’s self-authorship), and ethical ambiguity (Žižek’s traumatic Real). The findings highlight how personal mythmaking reconciles scientific rationality with archetypal narratives, offering a model for identity reconstruction in empirical paradigms.

Source: Repository of the University of Ljubljana (University of Ljubljana)

Authors: Blažič, Milena, Iseni, Arburim

Language: English

Topic: Autobiographical and Biographical Writing

Subfield: Literature and Literary Theory

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W7075997822

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