sociology of the body
SOC 3746
Course Description:
In this course, we will examine the body and its relationship to the self as a product of complex social arrangements and processes. The body will be addressed not as a pre-social physical fact, but as something interpreted through the lens of culture. We will study: social theory and the history of the body, the body and the self, the body in consumer culture, the body as related to health, aging, and dying, and the body as an object of social control and regulation. Students will learn to use reflection of their own embodied experience and examine one topic related to the body in-depth.
Past Syllabus:
Fall 2019 Syllabus
This course involves the creation of a scrapbook or photo journal in which students track their body modifications (i.e. haircuts, manicures) over the course of a semester.
“The course was very interesting and informative. The professor seemed knowledgeable.”