Body Modification and the Female Body

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Conference: 9th March 2013, University of York
An interdisciplinary one day conference

Call for Papers
Body modification is a controversial topic within feminism. The debate
centres on issues of agency, pleasure, oppression, and false
consciousness, and often pitches different understandings of women,
and 'second' and 'third' waves of feminism, in opposition. Our
definition of body modification is broad, from shaved legs to buttock
implants; from the honed 'fit' body to 'fat-reducing' surgery; from
self-tanning to pro-ana; from piercings to gender reassignment, and
much more.

This conference seeks to create a space where differences of
perspective, of cultural understanding and of theoretical viewpoint
can be tackled through debating issues of body modification. Our aim
is to expand understandings of various forms of body modification as
well as develop feminist understandings across multiple disciplines.
We hope to attract speakers a wide range of disciplines including but
not limited to Social Sciences, Women and Gender Studies, History,
Medicine, English, Art and Philosophy.

We welcome abstracts for 20 minute papers, and also encourage people
to submit ideas for relevant performances or art work.

Areas for discussion are listed below, but we encourage any topic
within the theme of the conference:

Aesthetics, idealism and body modification; Agency, ownership and
oppression; Embodied experiences; Body image; Body as object; Gendered
experience; Discourses of modification; Mind/body duality and the
individual; Medicalisation; Popular feminism and popular culture;
Commercialism; Individualism and neo-liberalism; Sexuality; Femininity
and masculinity; The racialised body; Eating disorders;
Fatness/thinness; Technology; Transgender; The aging body.

Please send abstracts of 250-300 words to bodyprojectsconf@gmail.com
by the 10th December 2012.

Those who have submitted abstracts will be notified of acceptance by
the 1st January 2013.

For more information, please see their website.