Sunday, May 29, 2011

TSS/Weekly Geeks: Social Issue---Body Image and books related to it


Long time I did a Weekly Geeks post. This one took me back to May 2008, when Dewey was alive and she had posted it. As it is still so relevant, so I decided to go for it.

Choose a political or social issue that matters to you. Find several books addressing that issue; they don’t have to books you’ve read, just books you might like to read. Using images (of the book covers or whatever you feel illustrates your topic) present these books in your blog.

I am choosing Body Image. We all can connect with it. All of us have had some issues related to it. How do we define Body Image?

All of us are aware that Body image refers to a person's perception of the aesthetics and sexual attractiveness of their own body. Human society has at all times placed great value on beauty of the human body, but a person's perception of their own body may not correspond to society's standards. The concept of body image includes psychology, medicine, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, philosophy and cultural and feminist studies.  People who have a low body image try to alter their body in some way, such as by dieting, or undertaking cosmetic surgery. The media is responsible for creating a perfect Body Image, which does not exist. 

Now let's take some books related to Body Image.



Body image: understanding body dissatisfaction in men, women, and children by Sarah Grogan


Sarah Grogan provides a comprehensive overview of the subject of body image, pulling together diverse research from the fields of psychology, sociology, media, and gender studies in men, women, and children. 

Under the Skin A Psychoanalytic Study of Body Modification bAlessandra Lemma


Under the Skin considers the motivation behind why people pierce, tattoo, cosmetically enhance, or otherwise modify their body, from a psychoanalytic perspective. It discusses how the therapist can understand and help individuals for whom the manipulation of the body is felt to be psychically...


The Invisible Man :A Self-help Guide for Men With Eating Disorders, Compulsive Exercise and Bigorexia by John F. Morgan
Increasingly boys and men are suffering with eating disorders and related body image problems. Some have full-blown conditions such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia, binge eating, compulsive exercising or bigorexia. Others are distressed by slightly lesser degrees of disordered eating or over-exercise and seek ways of overcoming their problems.
The Invisible Man applies the latest research to produce a practical, problem-focused self-help manual for men with eating disorders and body image problems. Divided into four sections, this evidence-based survival kit covers:
  • the wider cultural context of male body image problems
  • features unique to men
  • science fact and science fiction
  • a 7 stage approach to treatment.
By combining the science of cognitive behaviour therapy with motivational enhancement and problem-solving therapies, The Invisible Man provides help to all men with body image disorders, as well as families and professionals involved in their care.

4 comments:

Pam (@iwriteinbooks) said...

Interesting topic! I'll say that I have, at points, had three holes in each ear, an eyebrow piercing, my belly button pierced and one teeny tiny tattoo on my ankle but I can't say that it's in the event of body image or self mutilation, more for fun. ;O)

As far as the body image, itself goes, I don't know if the media is so much responsible as it is responsive. As you mentioned, it's been an ongoing social phenomenon since time began. One might wonder if it's a thing the media simply echos rather than something it promotes. But I have done a LOT of thinking on this topic so it may be a discussion for another day! ;O)

bermudaonion said...

This is a topic that really needs to be addressed more in the US, particularly with young women.

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

I can write from experience on this issue...my daughter seems determined to modify and redefine every aspect of herself, from piercings to tattoos, not to mention her obsession with being thin. Already she is way too thin, IMO. But what do I know? LOL. And, since she's an adult, there's nothing I can do except speak my mind. For all the good that does!

But all around, young women see the images of supposedly "perfect" people and hope to become that.

Interesting topic.

Here's MY SUNDAY SALON POST

Harvee said...

I like reviewing exercise and diet books and getting OTHER people to follow the guidelines!