Overview
- A new and dynamic way of thinking about the fat female body
- Explores Western societies such as the UK, Australia and New Zealand
- A timely investigation of current moral panic over the alleged 'obesity epidemic'
- Addresses a gap in scholarship on body image
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About this book
Investigating the current interest in obesity and fatness, this book explores the problems and ambiguities that form the lived experience of 'fat' women in contemporary Western society. Engaging with dominant ideas about 'fatness', and analysing the assumptions that inform anti-fat attitudes in the West, The 'Fat' Female Body explores the moral panic over the 'obesity epidemic', and the intersection of medicine and morality in pathologising 'fat' bodies. It contributes to the emerging field of fat studies
by offering not only alternative understandings of subjectivity, the (re)production of public knowledge(s) of 'fatness', and politics of embodiment, but also the possibility of (re)reading 'fat' bodies to foster more productive social relations.
by offering not only alternative understandings of subjectivity, the (re)production of public knowledge(s) of 'fatness', and politics of embodiment, but also the possibility of (re)reading 'fat' bodies to foster more productive social relations.
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Keywords
Table of contents (11 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Introduction: The ‘Fat’ Female Body: Pathological, Political and Phenomenological Imaginings
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Pathologising Fatness: Medical Authority and Popular Culture
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Front Matter
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‘Fat’ Backlash: Activism and Identity Politics
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Front Matter
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‘Fat’ ‘Being’: Rethinking the ‘Body-Subject’ with Merleau-Ponty
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
Reviews
“I especially appreciated how Murray was able to weave her personal experiences as a fat woman with her philosophical argument. Her stories brought a much-needed personal touch to the book. Despite the fact that the book was originally published in 2008, it is still a timely and important work for anyone who is interested in the field of fat studies and theorizing the fat female body. … I would highly recommend that anyone studying in this area read this book.” (Jeannine A. Gailey, Fat Studies, Vol. 5 (2), August, 2016)
"This is a courageous, poignant, honest, passionate, angry book - rare qualities in a work of scholarship." - Bioethical Inquiry
"As Murray notes, her ambition has not been to offer a new model for "fat" embodiment, but to look for new ways to understand it. Murray has succeeded in her task admirably. By moving the examination of the "fat" female body into the realm of the philosophical, she has been able to take the theory of fatness in a new exciting direction." - Hannele Harjunen, Social Semiotics
"...extremely interesting and thought-provoking..." - Melanie Latham, Social and Legal Studies Journal "This is a courageous, poignant, honest, passionate, angry book - rare qualities in a work of scholarship." - Bioethical Inquiry
"As Murray notes, her ambition has not been to offer a new model for "fat" embodiment, but to look for new ways to understand it. Murray has succeeded in her task admirably. By moving the examination of the "fat" female body into the realm of the philosophical, she has been able to take the theory of fatness in a new exciting direction." - Hannele Harjunen, Social Semiotics
"...extremely interesting and thought-provoking..." - Melanie Latham, Social and Legal Studies Journal
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Samantha Murray is a Senior Researcher in the Gendered Violence Research Network at the University of New South Wales, Australia. Prior to this, Samantha lectured in Cultural Studies at Macquarie University, Australia, and later worked in the not-for-profit sector. She has published several journal articles and book chapters on embodiment, and the discursive constructions of normalcy and pathology.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: The 'Fat' Female Body
Authors: Samantha Murray
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230584419
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan London
eBook Packages: Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies Collection, Social Sciences (R0)
Copyright Information: Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited 2008
Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-230-54258-7Published: 30 September 2008
Softcover ISBN: 978-1-137-57970-6Published: 30 September 2008
eBook ISBN: 978-0-230-58441-9Published: 30 September 2008
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: VIII, 196
Topics: Gender Studies, Health Psychology, Cultural and Media Studies, general, Sociology of the Body, Popular Science in Medicine and Health, Feminism