Fall 2012

The Embodied Self in American Culture and Society

Listed in: American Studies, as AMST-215  |  Anthropology and Sociology, as ANTH-111

Faculty

Francis G. Couvares (Section 02)
Allen Guttmann (Section 01)

Description

(Offered as AMST 215 and ANTH 111) "The Embodied Self" in American Culture and Society is an interdisciplinary, historically organized study of American perceptions of and attitudes towards the human body in a variety of media, ranging from medical and legal documents to poetry and novels, the visual arts , film, and dance. Among the topics to be discussed are the physical performance of gender; the social construction of the ideal male and female body; health reform movements; athletic achievement as an instrumentalization of the body; commercialization of physical beauty in the fitness and fashion industries; eating disorders as cultural phenomena; the interminable abortion controversy; the equally interminable conflict over pornography and the limits of free speech; and adaptations to the possibility of serious illness and to the certainty of death.

Limited to 20 students . Fall semester.  Professor Guttmann.

If Overenrolled: Preference will be given, in descending orders, to preregistered juniors & senior Anthropology or American Studies majors who attend the first class; other juniors & seniors who attend the first class; first-year & sophomore Anthro or Amer Studies majors.

Cost: $50 ?

AMST 215 - L/D

Section 01
M 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 203
W 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 203
F 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 203

Section 02
M 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 101
W 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 101
F 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM CHAP 101

This is preliminary information about books for this course. Please contact your instructor or the Academic Coordinator for the department, before attempting to purchase these books.

Section(s) ISBN Title Publisher Author(s) Comment Book Store Price
All Awakening Amherst Books TBD
All Dubious Conceptions: The Politics of Teenage Pregnancy Amherst Books TBD
All Everyman Amherst Books TBD
All Fashion, Culture, and Identity Amherst Books TBD
All Fat Shame: Stigma and the Fat body in American Culture Amherst Books TBD
All Leaves of Grass Amherst Books TBD
All Sun Also Rises Amherst Books TBD
All Unbearable Weight Amherst Books TBD
All Yellow Wallpaper Amherst Books TBD

These books are available locally at Amherst Books.

Offerings

2024-25: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Spring 2015, Spring 2017, Spring 2019, Fall 2020