Role of The Body in The Formation of Identities in Contemporary Culture and Society - Research Paper Example

Sociology of the Body ROLE OF THE BODY IN THE FORMATION OF IDENTITIES IN CONTEMPORARY CULTURE AND SOCIETY INTRODUCTION According to various scholars (Shilling 2003; Turner 2008; Lupton 1996; Foucault 2002; Connell 2005), the body is a material, biological entity in a social, cultural context. Thus the concept of the body encompasses multiple dimensions and processes. The body is considered to be a symbol of who an individual is. It helps to create an individual’s identity in contemporary society. The objectification and representation of the bodies of men and women in the media, their opposing constructions on the basis of gender and sexuality, the cultural imposition of notions of ideal, optimal bodies are factors that fuel men and women to strive towards physically modifying their appearance through various means. The various dualisms related to the body are linked to culture and society. The social construction of the body, the representation of gender and sexuality underscores certain body-types as desirable in contemporary society. Further, the body is central to the consumer culture, which impacts an individual’s identity, status and sense of belonging to a particular group. The emphasis on bodily perfection results in social exclusion of those with bodily deviances. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to critically discuss the factors underlying the role of the body in the formation of contemporary identities. It will be argued that the body plays a crucial role in achieving self-image and identity in contemporary society, which ultimately impacts the individual’s status in society. DISCUSSION Social change is the underlying cause of the increasing significance of the concept of the body. Feminist writers such as Betterton (1996) and activists concerned with disability (Mitchell & Snyder 1997) revealed the political status of the body as a medium of exploitation. Turner (1996:11-13) argued that the body has developed into a central field of political and cultural activity, and that contemporary society is a “somatic society” which relates to the body rather than the mind. Dualisms and the Body Dualisms play a part in the body being a contested entity. An example is nature versus nurture: whether the body is a result of genes and biology or environmental factors affecting the individual. Other dualisms are related to the body as a natural or a social entity, the social categories related to the body as subjective or objective, and whether the body can be differentiated as moral or immoral. Waskul & Vannini (2006) argue that the sociology of the body needs to surpass dualisms and the somatic notion of society, and requires a new concept such as body ekstiasis which includes semiotic or symbolic social relations related to the inevitability of consequences, and based on the active role played by social agents in developing body image to the self and others. A conception of the relationship between the mind and the body differentiates the two domains since the body is base or inferior and the mind is pure or superior. While the body is made up of physical material, the mind consists of abstract properties (Descartes 2008). The civilizing process emphasized self discipline and the individual’s control on emotional expression and bodily behaviours such as eating, sexual behaviours, and toilet behaviours. Elias et al (2000) support this view, adding that societies’ conceptualization of normal and abnormal behaviour determines the notion of the body, which is thus related to culture. Social transformation from modernity to late or high modernity has been characterized by uncertainty. Giddens (1991), Beck (1992) and Douglas (1986), argue that a key feature of contemporary societies is risk. In post-traditional societies, people’s identities and their sense of self are not entitlements, that is, individuals can no longer derive their identity from their traditional place in society: be it class, family, gender, or locality. Rather, they have to rely on organized endeavour to realize their identity. Social Construction of the Body The social construction of the body has been studied by various theorists. Douglas (2002) has explained risk, bodily boundaries, taboos and social order. Social historians such as Elias et al (2000), studied the civilizing process by which individuals have to gain and maintain control over their emotional and bodily expressions in order to be a part of society. Foucault discussed regulation, social control and discourse related to the body. “At the level of the individual body, power operates through the inscription of social-cultural norms of the body, resulting in a politicization of the body” (McLaren 2002: 91). Foucault’s biopower functions at the level of body politic or group, through population control, public health and genetics. His new theory of the micro-physics of power reveals how power operates on individual bodies. Feminists have used Foucault’s concepts of power and disciplinary practices in determining gender norms. Goffman, Lemert & Branaman (1997) discussed the central role played by the body in stigma management and spoiled identity. The performance of the body is “the various ways in which the body and the norms regarding its presentation mediate between an individual’s social identity and self-identity” (Williams & Bendelow 1998: 60). People actively construct their social world; and the social construction of the body marginalizes the genetic and biological aspects of human life. An important influence on the social construction of the body is Schulz’s phenomenology or philosophy based on the assumption that reality consists of the objects and events as they are perceived (Schulz & Wagner 1970). The phenomenological perspective focuses on the ‘lived body’, the idea that human beings and their consciousness is invariably embedded within the body. The human being is an embodied social agent. Significantly, Merleau-Ponty (2002) argued that all human perception is embodied. However, for symbolic interactionists (Waskul & Vannini 2006) and ethno-methodologists such as Ten Have (2004), psychological and biological elements of the body are based on social facts. How individuals handle their bodies in social situations is crucial to their self and identity. Moreover, society differentiates between gendered and sexualized bodies which on the basis of anatomy are separated as sexually opposite and different. Objectification of Female and Male Bodies in Contemporary Society Body images are cultural fabrications, historically and culturally specific, hence ideal body images change over time. Modern culture has become sexualized or “pornified” (Paasonen et al 2008). Porn is increasingly omnipresent and dominates all forms of media, in the contemporary world. The growing commodification of sexuality and desire is leading to a search for new forms of sexuality. The representations of gender and sexuality designate certain types of body as desirable, and these goals are actively sought out at various levels. The female ideal body is thin with perfect facial features, skin, and hair. Such an apearance is emphasized upon in advertising, films and other media. Women and men’s bodies are presented in an objective manner, while creating an illusion of the ideal appearance. This results in a deep impact on individuals’ self-image thereby producing a distorted body image, and resulting in an active pursuit of the ideal look depicted relentlessly from various sources. Thus, to gain the required identity and subsequent acceptance by the related peer group, women resort to bulimia, anorexia and extreme forms of dieting (Nettleton 1998). In a study conducted by Dunkley, Wertheim & Paxton (2001), the perceived role was observed, of three types of sociocultural agents (peers, parents, and media) on influencing body dissatisfaction and dietary restraint in adolescent girls. Current body size strongly predicted ideal body size and body dissatisfaction. However, the perceived influence of multiple sociocultural agents regarding thinness had a direct relationship with the concept of body ideal and consequent dissatisfaction. This led to severe dietary restraint, among the girls living in a subculture supporting a thin body ideal. Similarly, evidence from research conducted by Becker (2004) reveals that it was vital to plan appropriate interventions for vulnerable adolescent populations in Fiji where rapid modernization and social transition was resulting in increasing rates of disordered eating and other risk behaviours. This had implications for the young people’s self-image, identity and adjustment in society. For men, the dominant or hegemonic masculinity (Connell 1995) is a white, heterosexual ideal, as well as the muscular body type (Wienke 1998). Men who are excluded from this domain try to prove themselves by extreme measures to gain an identity in other fields. In comparison with the hegemonic masculinity, other male concepts related to the homosexual or the black, are subordinated, since there is a resistance to accepting any other masculine parameters. In his book Black Skin, White Masks, nearly fifty years ago, Frantz Fanon described the damaging effects of the "epidermalization" of blackness under colonial relationships of power (Fanon 1986). The Body, Consumption and Identity According to the Frankfurt school, consumption reflects a failure of socialism, believes that capitalism marginalizes real needs and misguides the population with false needs (Adorno 1983; Horkheimer 1982; Marcuse 1988). Manipulation by producers of goods occurs as a result of their mass production. People’s choice of specific foods, engaging in sports, and other activities are guided by discourse. Consumer culture is a set of cultural ideas, values and practices built up specifically around consumption. Consumption has both material and symbolic elements, and includes the interpretation of goods. The body is central in practices of consumption. Weber (2003) states that status and lifestyle define groups, organize the lives people lead, and provide solidarity and friendship. Concurrently, consumption also creates outgroups or ‘others’ who are not included in the group. Contrastingly, it is important to note that the social identity theory proposed by Kleine, Kleine & Kernan (1993) looks at consumers on the basis of ecological validity. It acknowledges people as multi-faceted beings, rational in their purchase of goods that facilitate the day to day processes in people’s lives. There is a complex inter-relationship between the labelling, designing and advertising of products, and the changing sub-cultural values of their potential consumers. Increased rates of consumption are fuelled by desire to keep up with the peer group (Dunn 2008) and results in the construction of identity that is fluid and capable of frequent changes. This is supported by Baudrillard’s theory of construction of self-identity using consumption as the key by increasing numbers of people. The poststructuralist view is that consumption is a set of social and cultural practices which act as a way of establishing differences between social groups. “People create a sense of who they are through what they consume” (Bocock 1993: 67). Fashion Trends and Inscribing the Body Cultural processes lead to modification of the biological body in empowering as well as degrading ways. The ancient practices of piercing and tattooing (Fisher 2002) have becoming increasingly fashionable in contemporary times. Other contemporary forms of modifying the appearance of the body include anorexia or self-starvation, cosmetic surgery, skin bleaching and lightening, use of make-up, and hair-salon make-overs. Further, liposuction, breast-implants, face-lifts, and nose-jobs are undertaken for enhancement of those parts perceived as imperfect. According to Siebers (1994), there is great emphasis on building muscle, eutopian bodies and enhancement through body projects such as aerobics, weight training, working out and engaging in sports activities. Women use body work to negotiate the relationship between their body and their self. Shaping the body can be seen as a new form of postmodern art. Gimlin (2002) examines women’s relationship to beauty from a feminist sociological perspective. Women in contemporary society are under intense pressure to meet ideals of beauty. A distinctive perspective is that the body is an unfinished biological and social phenomenon, which is transformed to a certain extent as a result of its participation in society. Thus, the body is seen as “an entity which is in the process of becoming; a project which should be worked at and accomplished as part of an individual’s self identity” (Shilling 2003, p.4). Power and Discourse Foucault’s (2002) argument on whether men and women in contemporary society are active or passive in working towards their choices, is guided by discourse. The body is considered as the site of plurality of individual lifestyles. Those bodies that do not conform to the norms of perfection are regarded as faulty. Bodily deviances commonly occur as a result of weight gain, accident, illness, disfigurement, or impairment. There is an attitude of “othering” towards bodies not seen as conforming, and the exclusion of physically or mentally challenged individuals from society (Turner 2008). Biophysical changes due to chronic illnesses such as arthritis lead to anxiety and significant personal and social consequences. However, through determined reconstruction and recovery of their self-image “they made particular efforts to bring their perceived body-image more in line with ideal images”, states Nettleton (1998: 18). Demographic factors such as the “greying of populations” have highlighted the changing nature of bodies. Moral and ethical debates on issues such as euthanasia, pertain to the “ownership” of bodies. Moreover, though people are living longer, there has been a concurrent rise in the number of people suffering from long-standing, restricting illnesses (Dunnell 2008). Haraway (2008) visualizes the body in contemporary society as a mixture of organic and mechanical parts, presenting a super-enhanced being. In the cyborgian body devices are implanted to overcome impaired functioning of the related parts. Examples are pacemakers for the heart, contact lenses for correcting vision defects, contraceptive implants, voice recognition software, etc. The human/ machine optimizes the body and controls it at the same time. This choice of technology is not available to all individuals. According to Adams’ (2006) study of the two main sociological concepts on identity: self-reflexivity and habitus, and the relationship between identity, reflexivity and choice relating to changing social structure, it was found that the link between reflexivity and social transformation is a reality. This is also supported by Adkins (2003: 35), who asserts that it “can in no way be taken for granted”. It has been argued, however, that it is important to highlight the ways in which both opportunity as well as lack of opportunity are attracted towards particular social groups, in the context of social change. Derrida’s theory of deconstruction, “accounts for how a text’s explicit formulations undermine its implicit or non-explicit aspects. It brings out what the text excludes by showing what it includes” (Silverman 1989, p.4). Marginality and supplementarity are elements of deconstruction. Only by including the groups that are marginalized and deprived of opportunities can social theory make a valuable contribution to our understanding of body in relation to social identity (Bottero 2004). This is reiterated by Bauman (2000: 86) who states that “all of us are doomed to the life of choices, but not all of us have the means to be choosers”. CONCLUSION In this paper, the significance of the role of the body in contemporary culture and society, and the embodiment of personal identity were highlighted. Dualisms pertaining to the body have been identified, and social construction of the body in various dimensions have been investigated. The objectification of female and male bodies because of their gendering and differential sexualization, and over exposure through various media has resulted in both men and women forming distorted perspectives of the ideal and coveted body images. Body dissatisfaction and going to great lengths to achieve the ideal forms has become the norm today. Disability and chronic illnesses, as well as colour bias based on racism form negative connotations for socialization. The emphasis is on bodily perfection in contemporary culture. In order to maintain their body’s fitness, develop their physique as well as to improve their appearance, individuals resort to consumerism, from a widely available array of strategies and cosmetic remedies. Similarly, body projects and work-outs practised for enhancing the form, besides various cosmetic interventions are growing in popularity. Further, the relationship between the body, consumption and identity has been determined. Giddens (1991) reiterates that the body once thought to be the residence of the soul, has become fully available to be “worked upon” by the forces of high modernity. These influences are: changing social norms as in the objectification of bodies, consumer culture and fashion trends. They increasingly impact the role of the body for developing self-image, identity, a sense of belonging in a particular group, and ultimately the achievement of social status highly coveted in contemporary society and culture. BIBLIOGRAPHY Adams, M. (2006). Hybridizing habitus and reflexivity: Towards an understanding of contemporary identity. Sociology, 40 (3): pp.511-528. Adkins, L. (2003). Reflexivity: Freedom or habit of gender? Theory, Culture and Society, 20 (6): pp.21-42. Adorno, T.W. (1983). Prisms. Massachusetts: MIT Press. Bauman, Z. (2000). Globalization. Cambridge: Polity Press. Beck, U. (1992). Risk society: Towards a new modernity. London: Sage Publications. Becker, A.E. (2004). 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