Sociology 2241E Chapter Notes - Chapter 11: Plastic Surgery, Muscle Dysmorphia, Dysphoria
11 Apr 2016
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Document Summary
Nothing more gendered than the body: the attributes of our bodies become key elements of our identities and who we are in the eyes of the world. We inscribe (dress, pose, style, pierce, shape_ our bodies with a wide range of cultural signs and symbols. Significant changes in the past few decades (cosmetic surgery, bc, the internet) have transformed this system of gendered signifying, making us more aware of our bodies than ever before. Our bodies are neither private property nor simple biological entities: they are shaped, made meaningful and scrutinized by our relations with the gendered society. The universal idea of a person has been constructed as able-bodied: in our culture, disability is often ignored or rendered invisible, seen only when the topic of disability is addressed. Ablism active discrimination against disabled people and attitudes that diminish disabled people"s competence and focus on disability as their defining characteristic. Disabled people are often infantilized or seen as childlike.
