Download or read book Surgery Junkies written by Victoria Pitts-Taylor and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2007-04-25 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Surgery Junkies is an innovative, fast-paced mix of theory and empirical research that advances our understanding of contemporary bodies, lifestyle medicine, and the making of the embodied, self-fashioned self. Scholars and teachers of cultural and media studies, sociology of the body, and health and society will value its contributions to both their research and their teaching."-Arthur W. Frank, author of The Wounded Storyteller: Body, Illness, and Ethics and The Renewal of Generosity: Illness, Medicine, and How to Live "Whether analyzing Extreme Makeover, 'Body Dismorphic Disorder,' or her own rhinoplasty, Pitts-Taylor makes difficult theoretical concepts clear-and clearly relevant to our lives."-Susan Bordo, author of Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body Despite the increasing prevalence of cosmetic surgery, there are still those who identify individuals who opt for bodily modifications as dupes of beauty culture, as being in conflict with feminist ideals, or as having some form of psychological weakness. In this ground-breaking book, Victoria Pitts-Taylor examines why we consider some cosmetic surgeries to be acceptable or even beneficial and others to be unacceptable and possibly harmful. Drawing on years of research, in-depth interviews with surgeons and psychiatrists, analysis of newspaper articles, legal documents, and television shows, and her own personal experience with cosmetic surgery, Pitts-Taylor brings new perspectives to the promotion of "extreme" makeovers on television, the medicalization of "surgery addiction," the moral and political interrogation that many patients face, and feminist debates on the topic. Pitts-Taylor makes a compelling argument that the experience, meanings, and motivations for cosmetic surgery are highly social and, in doing so, provides a much needed "makeover" of our cultural understanding of cosmetic surgery. Victoria Pitts-Taylor is associate professor of sociology at Queens College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York. She is the author of In the Flesh: The Cultural Politics of Body Modification.
Download or read book Beauty Junkies written by Alex Kuczynski and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2006-10-17 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A star writer for the New York Times Styles section captures the follies, frauds, and fanaticism that fuel the American pursuit of youth and beauty in a wickedly revealing excursion into the burgeoning business of cosmetic enhancement. Americans are aging faster and getting fatter than any other population on the planet. At the same time, our popular notions of perfect beauty have become so strict it seems even Barbie wouldn’t have a chance of making it into the local beauty pageant. Aging may be a natural fact of life, but for a growing number of Americans its hallmarks—wrinkles, love handles, jiggling flesh—are seen as obstacles to be conquered on the path to lasting, flawless beauty. In Beauty Junkies Alex Kuczynski, whose sly wit and fearless reporting in the Times has won her fans across the country, delivers a fresh and irresistible look at America's increasingly desperate pursuit of ultimate beauty by any means necessary. From a group of high-maintenance New York City women who devote themselves to preserving their looks twenty-four hours a day, to a “surgery safari” in South Africa complete with “after” photographs of magically rejuvenated patients posing with wild animals, to a podiatrist's office in Manhattan where a “foot face-lift” provides women with the right fit for their $700 Jimmy Choos, Kuczynski portrays the all-American quest for self-transformation in all its extremes. In New York, lawyers become Botox junkies in an effort to remain poker-faced. In Los Angeles, women of an uncertain age nip and tuck their most private areas, so that every inch of their bodies is as taut as their lifted faces. Across the country, young women graduating from high school receive gifts of breast implants – from their parents. As medicine and technology stretch the boundaries of biology, Kuczynski asks whether cosmetic surgery might even be part of human evolution, a kind of cosmetic survival of the fittest – or firmest? With incomparable portraits of obsessive patients and the equally obsessed doctors who cater to their dreams, Beauty Junkies examines the hype, the hope, and the questionable ethics surrounding the advent of each new miraculous technique. Lively and entertaining, thought-provoking and disturbing, Beauty Junkies is destined to be one of the most talked-about books of the season.
Download or read book Beauty Junkies written by Alex Kuczynski and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2008-01-15 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A star writer for the New York Times Styles section captures the follies, frauds, and fanaticism that fuel the American pursuit of youth and beauty in a wickedly revealing excursion into the burgeoning business of cosmetic enhancement. Americans are aging faster and getting fatter than any other population on the planet. At the same time, our popular notions of perfect beauty have become so strict it seems even Barbie wouldn’t have a chance of making it into the local beauty pageant. Aging may be a natural fact of life, but for a growing number of Americans its hallmarks—wrinkles, love handles, jiggling flesh—are seen as obstacles to be conquered on the path to lasting, flawless beauty. In Beauty Junkies Alex Kuczynski, whose sly wit and fearless reporting in the Times has won her fans across the country, delivers a fresh and irresistible look at America's increasingly desperate pursuit of ultimate beauty by any means necessary. From a group of high-maintenance New York City women who devote themselves to preserving their looks twenty-four hours a day, to a “surgery safari” in South Africa complete with “after” photographs of magically rejuvenated patients posing with wild animals, to a podiatrist's office in Manhattan where a “foot face-lift” provides women with the right fit for their $700 Jimmy Choos, Kuczynski portrays the all-American quest for self-transformation in all its extremes. In New York, lawyers become Botox junkies in an effort to remain poker-faced. In Los Angeles, women of an uncertain age nip and tuck their most private areas, so that every inch of their bodies is as taut as their lifted faces. Across the country, young women graduating from high school receive gifts of breast implants – from their parents. As medicine and technology stretch the boundaries of biology, Kuczynski asks whether cosmetic surgery might even be part of human evolution, a kind of cosmetic survival of the fittest – or firmest? With incomparable portraits of obsessive patients and the equally obsessed doctors who cater to their dreams, Beauty Junkies examines the hype, the hope, and the questionable ethics surrounding the advent of each new miraculous technique. Lively and entertaining, thought-provoking and disturbing, Beauty Junkies is destined to be one of the most talked-about books of the season.
Download or read book Beauty Junkies written by Alex Kuczynski and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this fascinating, sharply written insight into America's $15 billion cosmetic surgery industry, author Alex Kuczynski paints an incomparable picture of obsessive patients and the equally obsessive doctors who cater to their dreams.From a group of high-maintenance New York City women who devote themselves to preserving their looks twenty-four hours a day and a podiatrist's office in Manhattan where a 'foot face-lift' provides women with the right fit for their $700 Jimmy Choos, to a 'surgery safari' in South Africa complete with photographs of magically rejuvenated patients posing with wild animals, Kuczynski portrays the quest for transformation in all its extremes. In Los Angeles women of an uncertain age even nip and tuck their most private areas, so that every inch of their bodies is as taut as their lifted faces.Lively and entertaining, thought-provoking and disturbing, BEAUTY JUNKIES is destined to become the most talked-about book of the season.
Download or read book Pretty Scary written by Anne J. and published by Author House. This book was released on 2009-01-12 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Anne J. had the job of jobs. As a patient consultant for some of the most successful cosmetic surgeons in Beverly Hills, she was not only highly paid but enjoyed unlimited entree into the world of Beautiful People-most of whom weren't born that way. Grateful patients showered her with gifts-spa days and weekend retreats. Gift certificates for Hermes and Chanel. Invitations to party with the A-list. Anne thought she was making dreams come true until she began seeing the nightmarish excesses of both doctors and patients. A vicious circle of vanity, greed, and even gross negligence. That's when she knew she had to speak out and save what was nearly destroyed by the surgeon's scalpel--her own self-respect. This is her story.
Download or read book Placebo Junkies written by J.C. Carleson and published by Knopf Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2015-10-27 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Going Bovine meets Trainspotting in this gritty portrait of at-risk teens gaming the prescription drug trial system. Meet Audie: Professional lab rat. Guinea pig. Serial human test subject. For Audie and her friends, “volunteering” for pharmaceutical drug trials means a quick fix and easy cash. Sure, there’s the occasional nasty side effect, but Audie’s got things under control. If Monday’s pill causes a rash, Tuesday’s ointment usually clears it right up. Wednesday’s injection soothes the sting from Tuesday’s “cure,” and Thursday’s procedure makes her forget all about Wednesday’s headache. By the time Friday rolls around, there’s plenty of cash in hand and perhaps even a slot in a government-funded psilocybin study, because WEEKEND! But the best fix of all is her boyfriend, Dylan, whose terminal illness just makes them even more compatible. He’s turning eighteen soon, so Audie is saving up to make it an unforgettable birthday. That means more drug trials than ever before, but Dylan is worth it. No pain, no gain, Audie tells herself as the pills wear away at her body and mind. No pain, no gain, she repeats as her grip on reality starts to slide. . . . Raw and irreverent, Placebo Junkies will captivate readers until the very end, when author J. C. Carleson leans in for a final twist of the knife.
Download or read book The Visual Culture Reader written by Nicholas Mirzoeff and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2002 with total page 762 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The diverse essays collected here constitute an exploration of the emerging interdisciplinary field of visual culture, and examine why modern and postmodern culture place such a premium on rendering experience in visual form.
Download or read book Technologies of the Gendered Body written by Anne Marie Balsamo and published by Duke University Press. This book was released on 1996 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book looks at the representation of the body in culture from a feminist perspective. Subjects covered include bodybuilding, cosmetic surgery, and cyberculture.
Download or read book The Routledge Handbook of the Body written by Bryan Turner and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-07-24 with total page 428 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the last three decades, the human body has gained increasing prominence in contemporary political debates, and it has become a central topic of modern social sciences and humanities. This collection of thirty original essays by leading figures in the field explores these issues across a number of theoretical and disciplinary perspectives, with a wide range of case studies.
Download or read book Cosmetic Surgery Narratives written by Debra Gimlin and published by Springer. This book was released on 2012-10-23 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines British and American women's narratives of cosmetic surgery, exploring what those narratives say about the contemporary status of cosmetic surgery and 'local' ideas about its legitimate and illegitimate uses.
Download or read book Women Doctors and Cosmetic Surgery written by R. Parker and published by Springer. This book was released on 2010-03-10 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores an innovative study of women who undergo cosmetic study and the doctors who carry it out. It situates cosmetic surgery as a personal choice made by women against the social and cultural reality of the way women's bodies are scrutinised in Western countries.
Download or read book Life after New Media written by Sarah Kember and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2014-12-05 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An argument for a shift in understanding new media—from a fascination with devices to an examination of the complex processes of mediation. In Life after New Media, Sarah Kember and Joanna Zylinska make a case for a significant shift in our understanding of new media. They argue that we should move beyond our fascination with objects—computers, smart phones, iPods, Kindles—to an examination of the interlocking technical, social, and biological processes of mediation. Doing so, they say, reveals that life itself can be understood as mediated—subject to the same processes of reproduction, transformation, flattening, and patenting undergone by other media forms. By Kember and Zylinska's account, the dispersal of media and technology into our biological and social lives intensifies our entanglement with nonhuman entities. Mediation—all-encompassing and indivisible—becomes for them a key trope for understanding our being in the technological world. Drawing on the work of Bergson and Derrida while displaying a rigorous playfulness toward philosophy, Kember and Zylinska examine the multiple flows of mediation. Importantly, they also consider the ethical necessity of making a “cut” to any media processes in order to contain them. Considering topics that range from media-enacted cosmic events to the intelligent home, they propose a new way of “doing” media studies that is simultaneously critical and creative, and that performs an encounter between theory and practice.
Download or read book Transforming Bodies written by H. Steinhoff and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-05-26 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the turn of the twenty-first century, American media abound with images and narratives of bodily transformations. At the crossroads of American, cultural, literary, media, gender, queer, disability and governmentality studies, the book presents a timely intervention into critical debates on body transformations and contemporary makeover culture.
Download or read book The Art of Aesthetic Surgery written by Foad Nahai, M.D. and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2015-05-05 with total page 3224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seldom does a book achieve status as a classic in its first edition, but The Art of Aesthetic Surgery by Foad Nahai has been hailed as a masterpiece since its inception. Reviews have been universally laudatory, and residents and experienced practitioners alike have embraced this work as the ultimate resource on all things aesthetic. Now, this landmark work has been totally revised and updated with over 40 new chapters (many with new authors) and every chapter has been revised to reflect the latest trends, techniques, and information. This three-volume set also includes seven DVDs with 24 operative videos. Comprehensive Coverage 93 chapters in three volumes cover the full range of cosmetic medical treatments and aesthetic operations. Topics include: Hair transplantation and brow lift Eyelid surgery Laser resurfacing and chemical peels Tissue fillers and fat grafting Rhytidectomy and face and neck lift Facial implants Rhinoplasty and ptoplasty Lip rejuvenation Breast augmentation, reduction, and mastoplexy Surgical, noninvasive, and minimally invasive body contouring Liposuction To address the modern physician’s need for business acumen as well as surgical skill, three chapters focus on practice management, ranging from practice model options, staff and financial management, marketing and communications, and legal issues. World-Renowned Authors Dr. Foad Nahai is an acknowledged leader in aesthetic surgery. He has personally written a third of the chapters for this three-volume work. His contributors, representing the "who’s who" of aesthetic surgery, provide detailed accounts of their techniques for the different operations, as well as the planning process so crucial to producing excellent results. Help with Decision-Making Of particular note are the clinical decision-making chapters authored by Dr. Nahai. This invaluable insight provides readers with a unique overview of the various options for each problem, along with his preferred solutions. Complete with algorithms and case studies, this problem-solving feature offers the expert guidance necessary to sort through options, understand their advantages and limitations, and make the best choice for each patient. Necessary Anatomy Key chapters introducing each major anatomic region or topic area focus on applied anatomy and provide essential information that the surgeon needs to know to execute these surgical maneuvers safely and effectively. Reliable Format This new edition maintains the same features that made the previous edition so popular, including beautiful medical illustrations, large type for readability, and a consistent, comprehensive approach. The semi-atlas format features the applicable images located next to legend text for enhanced clarity.
Download or read book Health Food Junkies written by Steven Bratman, M.D. and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2004-07-27 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first book to identify the eating disorder orthorexia nervosa–an obsession with eating healthfully–and offer expert advice on how to treat it. As Americans become better informed about health, more and more people have turned to diet as a way to lose weight and keep themselves in peak condition. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa–disorders in which the sufferer focuses on the quantity of food eaten–have been highly documented over the past decade. But as Dr. Steven Bratman asserts in this breakthrough book, for many people, eating “correctly” has become an equally harmful obsession, one that causes them to adopt progressively more rigid diets that not only eliminate crucial nutrients and food groups, but ultimately cost them their overall health, personal relationships, and emotional well-being. Health Food Junkies is the first book to identify this new eating disorder, orthorexia nervosa, and to offer detailed, practical advice on how to cope with and overcome it. Orthorexia nervosa occurs when the victim becomes obsessed, not with the quantity of food eaten, but the quality of the food. What starts as a devotion to healthy eating can evolve into a pattern of incredibly strict diets; victims become so focused on eating a “pure” diet (usually raw vegetables and grains) that the planning and preparation of food come to play the dominant role in their lives. Health Food Junkies provides an expert analysis of some of today’s most popular diets–from The Zone to macrobiotics, raw-foodism to food allergy elimination–and shows not only how they can lead to orthorexia, but how they are often built on faulty logic rather than sound medical advice. Offering expert insight gleaned from his work with orthorexia patients, Dr. Bratman outlines the symptoms of orthorexia, describes its progression, and shows readers how to diagnose the condition. Finally, Dr. Bratman offers practical suggestions for intervention and treatment, giving readers the tools they need to conquer this painful disorder, rediscover the joys of eating, and reclaim their lives.
Download or read book Bodies in the Making written by Nancy N. Chen and published by North Atlantic Books. This book was released on 2006 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the twenty-first century, the body is experienced less as a fixed entity than it is as a protean product and a project of technological, medical and artistic invention. The essays in Bodies in the Making: Transgressions and Transformations address the proliferation of such transformative practices as tattooing, piercing, self-cutting, cosmetic and transsexual surgery, prosthetics, organ transplants and life extension technologies. Establishing links among these varied practices, the contributors illuminate the dramatic and widespread changes that have taken place across generations in attitudes towards the relation of the body to the mind, to agency and to subjectivity. Bodies in the Making also addresses a paradox that has shaped recent body modification debates. Although physical transformations are usually experienced as self-expressive and libratory, they are frequently understood to be socially determined, economically driven and culturally enmeshed. Contributors to the volume engage this contradiction directly, exploring ways in which diverse body practices are capable of subverting power while also at times re-inscribing it.
Download or read book Agewise written by Margaret Morganroth Gullette and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2011-04-15 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book cultural critic the author reveals that much of what we dread about aging is actually the result of ageism-which we can battle as strongly as we do racism, sexism, and other forms of bigotry. Drawing on provocative and under-reported evidence from biomedicine, literature, economics, and personal stories, Gullette probes the ageism that drives discontent with our bodies, our selves, and our accomplishments-and makes us easy prey for marketers who want to sell us an illusory vision of youthful perfection. Even worse, ageism causes society to discount the wisdom and experience acquired by people over the course of adulthood. The costs of this culture of decline are almost incalculable, diminishing our workforce, robbing younger people of hope for a decent later life, and eroding the satisfactions and sense of productivity that should animate our later years. Once we open our eyes to the pervasiveness of ageism we can begin to fight it.