Bodily Poetics: the Rhetorical Politics of the Self
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UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations 1-1-2007 Bodily poetics: The rhetorical politics of the self Allison Renee Kaminsky University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/rtds Repository Citation Kaminsky, Allison Renee, "Bodily poetics: The rhetorical politics of the self" (2007). UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 2120. http://dx.doi.org/10.25669/2rc0-6puo This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BODILY POETICS: THE RHETORICAL POLITICS OF THE SELF by Allison Renée Kaminsky Bachelor of Arts New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 2005 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree in Communication Studies Department of Communication Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas May 2007 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 1443768 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 1443768 Copyright 2007 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Allison Renée Kaminsky 2007 All Rights Reserved Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Thesis Approval The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas April 12 .2007 The Thesis prepared by Allison R. Kaminsky E ntitled BODILY POETICS; THE RHETORICAL POLITICS OF THE SET,F is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Examination Committei Dean of the Graduate College mination Examinatim Committee Membe eradicate College Faculty Representative 11 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT Bodily Poetics: The Rhetorical Politics of the Self by Allison Renée Kaminsky Dr. Donovan Conley, Examination Committee Chair Assistant Professor of Communieation Studies University of Nevada, Las Vegas This thesis will examine different ways people eonsciously manipulate their bodies in order to express selfhood, artieulate identities, fulfill desires, and signal social and political commitments. The major premise of this research is that bodies are rhetorically constructed through a series of fundamental assumptions about selfhood, social ideals and aeeeptability, and political struggle. This paper argues that there are no a priori distinctions between the various practices and meanings of body modification. The way we think about body modification is based on a series of assumptions that define each practice. This project will look at three different groupings of modification organized around the subjective desires they express: Those articulating desires about 1) Interiority; 2) Acceptability; and 3) Struggle. 1 problematize the assumptions underlying these practices in order to gain insight into the sheer rhetoricity of the body, and to exemplify the central role rhetoric has in framing the uses and functions of our bodies. Ill Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................................iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .........................................................................................................iv CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................1 Rationale .................................................................................................................................... 6 Literature Review ......................................................................................................................9 Methodology ............................................................................................................................19 Thesis Organization ........................................................ 25 CHAPTER TWO NO BODY KNOWS THE REAL ME: INTERIORIZING THE BODY...........................................................................................................29 Who Am 1? Questions of the Authentic Self and the Body ............................................. 30 Body Modification as Projects of the “Core” Self .............................................................37 Modification or Mutilation? The Rhetorical Categorization of Body Projects ............ 47 Conclusions ................................................................................................................. 52 CHAPTER THREE MODIFYING SOCIETY: INTERIORITY AND CORPOREAL SOCIALITY...........................................................................................58 Interiority and Sociality: The Corporeal Socialization of the Self ................................. 62 Idealizing Society: Constructing a World of Corporeal Fantasy .....................................65 The Business of Bodies: Ideal Bodies and Corporeal Socialization ............................... 75 Normative Ideals and Peripheral Coiporeality.................................................................. 81 Conclusions ..............................................................................................................................85 CHAPTER FOUR POLITICAL SELVES, POLITICAL BODIES: MODIFYING THE BODY POLITIC....................................................................................... 88 Political Body Projects: Modifying the Self, Modifying the Environment ...................90 The Polities of Fatness: Intentional Obesity and Fast Food Culture ..............................96 The Rhetoric of Mortality: The Polities of Bodily Sacrifice ......................................... 104 Conclusions .......................................................................................................................... 111 CHAPTER FIVE CONCLUSION........................................................................................ 114 WORKS CITED .........................................................................................................................120 VITA.............................................................................................................................................127 IV Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project could not have been completed without the help of many people. First, 1 would especially like to thank Dr. Donovan Conley, my Committee Chair, who provided me invaluable knowledge, guidance, and support throughout the long process involved with the completion of this thesis. 1 would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Tara Emmers-Sommer, Dr. Kate Hausbeck, and Dr. David Henry. Your feedback and advice has been most appreciated. Beyond my committee, I would also like to extend my thanks to all of the faculty and staff of the Communications Department who have been there for me whenever 1 had questions or concerns. 1 also wish to thank my family and friends for listening to me talk about these topics in general, and my thesis speeifieally, for hours on end. Mom, Dad, Aaron, Carol, Andrea, Tina, Kris, Lior, Joe, and Tom—thank you for always being on call, providing me with words of encouragement when needed, and believing in me from start to finish. 1 dedicate this thesis to several people. First, to my mom for being the main reason why I have my own fascination with human bodies. 1 have always teased you that you have warped my mind, but it is also your influence that has taught me to question the mundane and never take anything at face value, and because of that I was able to conceive of this project. This thesis is also dedicated to both of my parents for their endless support and for teaching me to value my education above all else. 1 wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for you. Finally, I dedicate this thesis to body modifiers of all Reproduced with permission of the copyright