BETWEEN PAIN AND MEANING:

TENSIONS BETWEEN HUMANISM, STIGMA AND POPULAR CULTURE

Abstract

This article analyzes the tensions between humanism, stigma, and popular culture in the experience of fibromyalgia, in light of Logotherapy and the philosophy of human pain. The aim of the study is to understand how humanist narratives and expressions of popular culture contribute to symbolic reconstruction in the face of the stigma and delegitimization of fibromyalgia. Theoretically reflective and interdisciplinary in nature, the work articulates Franklinian humanism, the existential and philosophical reflection of C.S. Lewis, the sociological theory of Erving Goffman, and the contributions of contemporary rheumatology and popular culture. It concludes that the lack of biomedical and social recognition leads to the invisibility of suffering and that the symbolic and spiritual practices of popular culture act as mediators of coping and transcendence.