Course:WMST307: Student Pages: 307 Chow BodyPolitics

Body Politics

Body politics are defined as “practices and policies through which powers of society regulate the human body, as well as the struggle over the degree of individual and social control of the body” As newer concepts are moving away from “seeing bodies as simply containers for identity”, the body is becoming more of a representation of self and identity and is becoming “an increasingly important site for the negotiation of social meaning”. Therefore, culture has a great impact on shaping the body and how it is presented. Today’s society has put an large emphasis on physical beauty. Western aesthetics include being tall, thin and lean as being overweight or obese can often be associated with being diseased. However, in some countries being skinny is associated with poverty and sickness. Asides from physical aesthetics of the body, sociologist Marcel Mauss believed that the ways in which one conducts themselves in basic activity is also significantly influenced by culture . “Body techniques”, such as the way in which one walks or talks for example, are “learned in particular social contexts”. The example given by Mauss is the French women’s specific technique in walking and upholding themselves, compared to the American women’s. Sociologist Norbert Elias further explored the idea of the self-controlled body produced by Western civilization. The self-controlled body emphasizes the “increasing awareness of the effects of one’s behaviour on others” . Social rituals, manners, and other behaviour norms were derived and appropriate bodily conduct emerged. The self-controlled body a model that promotes the idea of “self-restraint and a clear sense of separation between private and public”.