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The Body: A Very Short Introduction

Chris Shilling

January 2016

ISBN: 9780198739036

144 pages
Paperback
174x111mm

In Stock

Very Short Introductions

Price: £8.99

In this Very Short Introduction Chris Shilling considers the social significance of the human body, and the importance of the body to individual and collective identities. He examines how bodies not only shape but are shaped by the social, cultural, and material contexts in which humans live.

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Description

In this Very Short Introduction Chris Shilling considers the social significance of the human body, and the importance of the body to individual and collective identities. He examines how bodies not only shape but are shaped by the social, cultural, and material contexts in which humans live.

  • Provides a compelling introduction to the importance of the body for contemporary identities and social relationships
  • Demonstrates how social relations, technological advances, and cultural representations shape the body and affect our understanding of body matters
  • Explores how body matters lie at the heart of contemporary cultural and religious conflicts
  • Examines how the body has become central to our self-identities, while also becoming subjected increasingly to economic forces
  • Part of the bestselling Very Short Introductions series - over seven million copies sold worldwide

About the Author(s)

Chris Shilling, Professor of Sociology, University of Kent.

Chris Shilling is Professor of Sociology at the University of Kent. He has been a key figure in the development of 'body studies', and has written extensively on embodiment, body pedagogics, and sociological theory, in areas ranging from religion, to sport, education, gender, and work. His most recent books are Sociology of the Sacred. Religion, Embodiment and Social, with Philip A. Mellor (Sage Publishing Ltd, 2014), and The Body and Social Theory, 3rd Edition (Sage Publishing Ltd, 2012).

Table of Contents

    Introduction
    1:Natural bodies or social bodies?
    2:Sexed bodies
    3:Educating bodies
    4:Governing bodies.
    5:Bodies as commodities
    6:Bodies matter! Dilemmas and controversies
    References and Further Reading
    Index

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