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Embodying Acne: Skin, Subjectivity and Dermatological

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Embodying Acne: Skin, Subjectivity and Dermatological EMBODYING ACNE: SKIN, SUBJECTIVITY AND DERMATOLOGICAL SCIENCE by Robert Scott Carey A thesis submitted to the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies In conformity with the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada April, 2017 Copyright © Robert Scott Carey, 2017 Abstract An extensive body of literature is dedicated towards understanding acne as either a dermatological or psychological problem. Surprisingly, scholars have yet to write critically or sociologically about a skin disease which affects an estimated 600 million people worldwide. As such, I bring together continental philosophies of the skin/body, science and technology studies, and sociological literature on health and illness to produce an embodied sociology of acne. I argue that pimpled skin becomes meaningful through dynamic interactions between science and culture, forming new epidermal identities and solidarities I term “dermosocialities.” I examine the ways dermosocialities are organized through acne, and begin to analyze some of the political, cultural and scientific consequences of dermosocial collectivization. Altogether, a sociology of acne highlights the need to think about the contemporary relationship between skin and self as medicalized, managed and experienced through an emerging class of skin experts, discourses, practices and objects. ii Acknowledgments I developed this project with others. Some of those relationships are old, while others are new. Although these relationships played an instrumental role in the completion of this document, I want to acknowledge that every single one of them means more to me than the sum of this document. I wanted to study at Queen’s because I wanted to work alongside and learn from Samantha King. Thank you, Sammi, for inspiring me throughout this entire process. Like so many others, I felt inspired by your work ethic, your teaching, and your scholarship. Those things certainly helped me complete this project. But I think I am most inspired by the kind of person you are outside of your work. Whether you know it or not, I’ve been learning from you in that realm, too. I’m proud of the things I was able to accomplish in this project with your unwavering trust, steadfast encouragement and gentle guidance. But I’m even more proud of the work I’ve been able to accomplish on myself over the last six years. Thank you for that. I also want to thank Mary Louise Adams and Elaine Power for their mentorship, friendship and support throughout this entire process. You have always challenged me to think (and write!) differently. I really value that, and am not sure there is any greater gift a teacher can give to a student. Additionally, I’ve always felt like I could go to either one of you for advice on a number of different fronts, knowing that you would respond honestly, compassionately, thoughtfully and practically. On the subject of advice, I also want to extend my sincere gratitude to Ishita Pande and Anne Pollock for serving as examiners and providing me with such rich and critical feedback to help guide future iterations of this project. iii This project also would not have been possible without the mentorship of Marc Lafrance. In fact, some of the writing in Chapter 5 comes directly from our conversations and collaborative research (that I hope continues well into the future). Thank you, Marc, for guiding me down unfamiliar paths towards thinking about acne and skin more broadly. I have learned so much from our reading lists, our writing, and our back-and- forth exchanges on skin and dermatology. There were also those back-and-forth exchanges with friends that usually had nothing to do with skin or dermatology – but meant everything in terms of keeping my spirits alive throughout the course of this research. Thanks to Adam Ali, Sarah Barnes, Andrea Brennan, Matt Caine, Katie Carter, Marty Clark, Kyle Clarke, Brittany Edgett, Thomas Ferrao, Pete Galbraith, John Geddes, Christine Grossutti, Matt Hawzen, Katie Hemsworth, Craig Hyatt, Graham Ketcheson, Trevor King, Lauren McNicol, Robbie Millington, Victoria Millious, Rylend Mulder, Jon Newman, Alex Pedersen, Andrea Phillipson, Mark Roberts, Sam Roberts, John Rose, Adam Saifer, Alex Simpson, Joel Smith, Trish Stenzl, Carla Teixera, Alex Tikhnenko, Cathy van Ingen, Matt Ventresca, Jeremy Walsh, Melissa Welsh, and Jenn Wigglesworth. Our exchanges have occurred through music, text, skype, activism, alcohol, work, sport, etc., and they have been the lifeblood of this dissertation. I also need to acknowledge the support I received from my family. I have a father who actually wanted to read my finished dissertation, a mother who knows better, and a brother who was writing one of his own. Each one of you took a different interest in my studies, and I thank you for that. iv To Flurry: I cannot thank you enough. Falling in love during grad school sounds like a romantic story we can look forward to telling people in the future. We know the reality, though. I’m grateful that we found each other, even if it was during some stressful years in our lives. Because of you, those same years also included plenty of beautiful, funny, and cherished moments that I hope we can build on. Thank you for being such an understanding, patient, and loving partner throughout the writing process. It made all the difference. Lastly, I dedicate this dissertation to the memory of my best friend, Tambo. You came into my life months before I started my Master’s degree, and you left months before I completed my doctorate. I wanted so badly to share these coming days with you, surrounded by the outdoors and doing what we loved to do most – hike. I used to think that our hikes allowed my mind to drift up into the clouds and contemplate big ideas. But it wasn’t until after you left that I realized where my mind actually was when we walked: grounded…most likely in whatever mess you found (or created) there. Here’s to the dirty, the decaying, and the disgusting through which we came to share an intimate knowledge. v Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ iii Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 2: A Theoretical Literature Review ............................................................... 16 Theorizing acne ............................................................................................................. 16 Critical perspectives on skin ......................................................................................... 19 Critical perspectives on science, health and illness ..................................................... 30 Critical, biomedical and psychological acne research ................................................. 39 Chapter 3: Methods ........................................................................................................ 45 Chapter 4: Pimpled Differences .................................................................................... 55 Dermopolitics ................................................................................................................ 55 Racializing complexion ................................................................................................. 59 Medicating racialized pimples ...................................................................................... 65 Feminism, materiality and acne .................................................................................... 73 Diagnosing “hormonal acne” ...................................................................................... 80 Accutane, risk and gender ............................................................................................. 85 Becoming “bad girls” ................................................................................................... 98 Queer skins and the politics of concealment ............................................................... 105 Chapter 5: Dermatological Suffering .......................................................................... 114 Institutionalized practices ........................................................................................... 118 Authoritative discourses .............................................................................................. 121 Emotional vocabularies .............................................................................................. 132 Visual images .............................................................................................................. 139 Social scripts ............................................................................................................... 147 Chapter 6: Psychosomatic Adventures With Acne .................................................... 159 Rupturing the (skin) ego .............................................................................................. 162 Libidinal dermatologies .............................................................................................. 170 Chapter 7: Dermosocial Futures (Conclusion) .......................................................... 191 Thinking dermosocialities ..........................................................................................
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