activities and bodily practices. With few notable exceptions (cf. Meth 2003), little
attention has been given to eliciting the personal emotions which influence, and are
influenced by, the experiences and actions of those recording the diaries. In this
research, solicited text and photo diaries were used to gain in-depth insight into the
emotions of people living with AIDS-related illness. Used in conjunction with the
methods applied in the wider research study, this enabled deepened understanding of
the context in which such emotions were felt, and the ways in which emotions were
intimately bound up with personal relations, identity and well-being.
Before discussing the commissioning of the diaries, it is important to
recognise the cultural context in which the diaries were undertaken. Socio-cultural
norms and notions play a key role in influencing displays of emotion (Tan et al. 2005)
and in this research, there was a clear distinction between emotions displayed in
public and private spaces. Public displays of emotion were restricted, with funerals
providing one of the few public arenas in which emotions such as grief and sorrow
were openly displayed, and particularly amongst women, expected.1 When asked
about emotional support networks however, people frequently commented that they
did not tend to share their negative emotions with others. The main reasons given for
this was that it would not be of any help to do so, that burdening someone else with
one’s emotions was inappropriate and shameful, and that divulging one’s feelings
may result in hurtful gossip. While talking about illness in a general context was not
tabooed, the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS meant that openly discussing people’s
personal experiences of illness risked upsetting, offending and stigmatising the ill
person. A major advantage of the solicited diaries was that they enabled people to
express their thoughts and emotions in writing, thus avoiding the potential upset and
harm that may have arisen through more conventional interviewing methods.