Susan Sontag on Disease and Metaphor
The essayist and novelist's new book, called AIDS and Its Metaphors, examines the discourse surrounding the disease. Sontag is a cancer survivor; a previous book about language and sickness is titled Illness as Metaphor. She joins Fresh Air to talk about how cancer changed her thinking and made her a more compassionate person.
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Other segments from the episode on February 10, 1989
Adrienne Kennedy Reflects on Her Early Career
The playwright reads a passage from her forthcoming memoir about studying with Edward Albee and writing her Obie-winning "Funnyhouse of a Negro."
Ricki Lake Brings Attitude to the Big Screen
The actress had her big break in John Waters' movie Hairspray, as the teen star Tracy Turnblad. Lake is larger than many of her peers, but has successfully landed roles written for skinny women. She joins Fresh Air to discuss her early influences, her post-Hairspray work, and her relationship with the late drag queen Divine.
A Classic Film Captures a Bygone Era
Critic Ken Tucker reviews the home video release The Sweet Smell of Success, which he says features gorgeous shots of 1950s New York City, and an unrelenting narrative intensity.
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