Playing with reality: representing the baby

The thesis contends that the complexity and depth of the emotional life of babies is seriously underestimated, putting at risk their mental health. This research brings science and art together to demonstrate the infant's capacity for communication and to present the infant as a person whose emotional health depends on relationships with others. A play entitled 'There is no such thing as a baby' is an imagined, creative representation of the infant's world from the infant's perspective. In the thesis, the play shares the stage with academic discourse to provide society with a unique way of connecting with and understanding the infant's emotional world.