Listen on Soundcloud

Patrick McGrath dialogues with Mario Fortunato about his book, Trauma, especially delving into its themes: psychiatry, madness, love, sex, and passion. Then, the conversation moves to the author: what drives them to write? When is the best moment of the day to write? Does the author always identify with his characters? How is a character born? As part of the Ratti Lecture series, the conference becomes a profound and witty exploration of the human psyche of the characters and their creator, himself.

Patrick McGrath (London, 1950), is an English writer who lives in New York since 1981. From a very young age, he lived in the vicinity of the psychiatric world, since his father worked as a psychiatrist in the criminal asylum of Broadmoor, Berkshire, where McGrath spent most of his childhood. Although he did not pursue the same career as his father wished, his work still centers around the idea of the human psyche. He has taught at several American universities, such as the University of Texas at Austin, Hunter College, and the New School in New York. His world-renowned novels are Asylum (1996), The Grotesque (1989), Spider (1990), Dr. Haggard's Disease (1993), Martha Peake: a Novel of the Revolution (2000), Port Mungo (2004), Trauma (2008), Constance (2013), The Wardrobe Mistress (2017).