Sleep Works cover art

Sleep Works

Experiments in Science and Literature, 1899–1929

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 15 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

Sleep Works

By: Sebastian P. Klinger
Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £13.41

Buy Now for £13.41

At the turn of the twentieth century, sleep began to be seen not merely as a passive state but as an active, dynamic process crucial to our understanding of consciousness and identity. In Sleep Works, cultural historian and literary scholar Sebastian P. Klinger explores the intriguing connections between scientific inquiry and literary expression during an era when sleep was both a scientific mystery and a cultural fascination.



Scientists, physicians, and pharmaceutical companies were at the forefront of this newfound fascination with sleep: some researchers distinguished sleep from related states such as fatigue and hypnosis, while others investigated sleep disorders and developed treatments for insomnia. Meanwhile, literary giants like Franz Kafka and Marcel Proust grappled with their own sleep disturbances and channeled these experiences into their writing. Through the lens of their discoveries, Klinger reveals the broader implications of sleep for concepts of selfhood and agency.



Tracing the emergence of sleep science and the cultural production of sleep through literature, Sleep Works weaves together literary analysis, historical context, and research in the archives of the pharmaceutical industry to provide a comprehensive and compelling account of how sleep has been understood, represented, and experienced in the modern era.
©2025 Johns Hopkins University Press Literary History & Criticism Physical Illness & Disease Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Sleep Disorders
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet