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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2013/2014
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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Social and Political Science : Lifelong Learning (SPS)

Undergraduate Course: Thinking through the Body (LLLJ07003)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Social and Political Science CollegeCollege of Humanities and Social Science
Course typeStandard AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) Credits10
Home subject areaLifelong Learning (SPS) Other subject areaNone
Course website None Taught in Gaelic?No
Course descriptionThis course is not available to University of Edinburgh matriculated students. This is a for-credit course offered by the Office of Lifelong Learning (OLL); only students registered with OLL should be enrolled.

Human bodies seem to be, at first glance, relatively fixed and certain physical entities. However, perspectives from social science show that bodies may be better understood as being shaped by a range of social and cultural factors, including gender, age and beliefs. This course draws primarily on sociological perspectives - and others including anthropology, philosophy, medicine and holistic healthcare - to provide a critical overview of these different ways of understanding bodies.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Additional Costs None
Course Delivery Information
Delivery period: 2013/14 Lifelong Learning - Session 3, Not available to visiting students (SS1) Learn enabled:  No Quota:  10
Web Timetable Web Timetable
Course Start Date 21/04/2014
Breakdown of Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 100 ( Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 78 )
Additional Notes
Breakdown of Assessment Methods (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
No Exam Information
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
* Demonstrate an understanding of social and cultural debates around the body (in particular relation to gender, consumerism, health and politics);
* Identify social scientific ways of thinking about bodies;
* Compare, contrast and critically evaluate various perspectives on bodies;
* Apply their understanding to everyday embodied life.
Assessment Information
Open Studies 10 credit courses have one assessment. Normally, the assessment is a 2000 word essay, worth 100% of the total mark, submitted by week 12. To pass, students must achieve a minimum of 40%. There are a small number of exceptions to this model which are identified in the Studying for Credit Guide.
Special Arrangements
None
Additional Information
Academic description Not entered
Syllabus Content of course
1. Which bodies? Nature and society
In the first week we will cover the basis of the debate underpinning the course. Bodies are undeniably biological ¿things¿, but they are also social. We will look at explanations of the social ¿construction¿ of the body and the interaction between biology and society.
2. Changing ideas about the body: historical and philosophical perspectives
This class covers a range of thinkers on the body, from Aristotle to Norbert Elias. We will look at their perspectives on the development of western ideas about the body.
3. Disciplining the body
In this class, we will explore the way in which society shapes and attempts to control the body. As well as considering the views of thinkers such as Michel Foucault and Bryan Turner, we will also consider the impact of a range of institutions (e.g. prisons, schools, governments, etc.).
4. Differently known bodies
This week covers feminist perspectives on bodies, which have highlighted fundamental differences in how we experience them. Hence, we will explore differences in embodied experience, for example in relation to gender, (dis)ability and age.
5. Medical bodies
The institution of medicine and the dominance of rational science and medical ways of knowing are examined in this class. We will also look at the impact of advances in technology on understandings of bodies. Critiques of mainstream medicine lead into the next class.
6. Holistic bodies
This week offers an overview of different ways of knowing about bodies found in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, Homeopathy and ¿mind-body¿ therapies. Why are they popular? Why are they still marginal?
7. Consuming bodies and the ¿body project¿
Bodies in consumer culture and the body as a never-ending ¿project¿ are the focus of this week. Areas of focus will include cosmetic surgery and eating disorders.
8. Working bodies and work on bodies
Whether paid or unpaid, work is often central to our embodied experience, not least because we spend so much time doing it. In this class we will look in particular at work which focuses on bodies (e.g. home care workers, beauticians, boxers, bouncers).
9. Bodies in popular culture
In the penultimate class we will look at the flood of TV shows which tell us how to eat, dress, lose weight and deal with ¿embarrassing illnesses¿. How ¿helpful¿ can we understand these to be, and might they fulfil a particular social function?
10. Course review and summary
Transferable skills Not entered
Reading list Essential Readings
Howson, A., 2004. The Body in Society. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Recommended
Bendelow, G., 2009. Health, Emotion and the Body. London: Polity.
Bivins, R., 2007. Alternative Medicine? A History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ehrenreich, B. and English, D., 2010. Witches, Midwives and Nurses. New York: Feminist Press.
Elias, N., 2000. The Civilizing Process. Vol I Part II. Oxford: Blackwell.
Turner, B.S., 2008. The Body and Society. 3rd ed. London: Sage.

Web sources
The Center for an Accessible Society, The ¿New Paradigm¿ of Disability:
http://www.accessiblesociety.org/topics/demographics-identity/newparadigm.htm
ORLAN (artist) website: http://www.orlan.net/
Stelarc 2009, Stretched Skin, Scott Livesey Galleries: http://stelarc.org/_.swf
Channel 4, Beauty and the Beast: the Ugly Face of Prejudice:
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/beauty-the-beast-ugly-face-of-prejudice
Angela McRobbie, Sociology of Culture: http://www.angelamcrobbie.com/
Study Abroad Not entered
Study Pattern Each two hour class will combine lecture and tutor led discussion.
KeywordsNot entered
Contacts
Course organiserMr James Mooney
Tel: (0131 6)50 3077
Email: james.mooney@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Sabine Murdoch
Tel: (0131 6)51 1855
Email: Sabine.Murdoch@ed.ac.uk
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