"Illness as a metaphor" (1978) is an essay of Susan Сонтаг, in that she tries демистифицировать a cancer, disrobing myths and metaphors, surrounding this illness. The theme of work is not physical pain as such, and using of illness as a figure of speech. Сонтаг asserts that a cancer is neither a curse nor punishment| it is simple disease (that it maybe to cure).After ten years, with the flash of new стигматизированной to illness plentiful mystifications and punitive metaphors, continuation appeared to "Illness". - "AIDS and his metaphors" (1989) are an essay, extending the research field to the pandemic of AIDS.Both works are presented in the real book, in that Сонтаг shows that "illness not metaphor and that the most honest going near illness, and also most "healthy method to be ill is to make an effort fully give up metaphorical thinking".