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Body Aesthetics
The body is a rich object for aesthetic inquiry. We aesthetically assess both our own bodies and those of others, and our felt bodily experiences--as we eat, have sex, and engage in other everyday activities--have aesthetic qualities. The body, whether depicted or actively performing, features centrally in aesthetic experiences of visual art, theatre, dance and sports.
Body aesthetics can be a source of delight for both the subject and the object of the gaze. But aesthetic consideration of bodies also raises acute ethical the body is deeply intertwined with one's identity and sense of self, and aesthetic assessment of bodies can perpetuate oppression based on race, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, size, and disability. Artistic and media representations shape how we see and engage with bodies, with consequences both personal and political.
This volume contains sixteen original essays by contributors in philosophy, sociology, dance, disability theory, critical race studies, feminist theory, medicine, and law. Contributors take on bodily beauty, sexual attractiveness, the role of images in power relations, the distinct aesthetics of disabled bodies, the construction of national identity, the creation of compassion through bodily presence, the role of bodily style in moral comportment, and the somatic aesthetics of racialized police violence.
Body aesthetics can be a source of delight for both the subject and the object of the gaze. But aesthetic consideration of bodies also raises acute ethical the body is deeply intertwined with one's identity and sense of self, and aesthetic assessment of bodies can perpetuate oppression based on race, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, size, and disability. Artistic and media representations shape how we see and engage with bodies, with consequences both personal and political.
This volume contains sixteen original essays by contributors in philosophy, sociology, dance, disability theory, critical race studies, feminist theory, medicine, and law. Contributors take on bodily beauty, sexual attractiveness, the role of images in power relations, the distinct aesthetics of disabled bodies, the construction of national identity, the creation of compassion through bodily presence, the role of bodily style in moral comportment, and the somatic aesthetics of racialized police violence.
- GenresEssays
350 pages, Hardcover
Published September 14, 2016
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December 29, 2025
Excellent analysis of the construction of desire through domination mechanisms and how to transform it.
This collection if essays took me by surprise, the input in it is quite informative and constitutes a deep dive in how desire is rooted within our subconscious parts and how taking a conscious decision to make it ethical is not enough to change it. This collection of essays provides also practices/tools to acquire new tastes and deconstruct conventional-oppressive ones. I can’t understand why this collection of essays is rarely reviewed on goodreads! It is one of the best political essays i have read this years!
I believe that therapists and especially sexologists have to read this book or at least be informed of its content. The quality of analysis here goes beyond any therapist/sexologist’s views i have met in my life and discussed this topic with. Always happily surpirsed when political essays cut deeper than conventional apolitical sexology/psychology sessions💖💖
This collection if essays took me by surprise, the input in it is quite informative and constitutes a deep dive in how desire is rooted within our subconscious parts and how taking a conscious decision to make it ethical is not enough to change it. This collection of essays provides also practices/tools to acquire new tastes and deconstruct conventional-oppressive ones. I can’t understand why this collection of essays is rarely reviewed on goodreads! It is one of the best political essays i have read this years!
I believe that therapists and especially sexologists have to read this book or at least be informed of its content. The quality of analysis here goes beyond any therapist/sexologist’s views i have met in my life and discussed this topic with. Always happily surpirsed when political essays cut deeper than conventional apolitical sexology/psychology sessions💖💖
Displaying 1 of 1 review