- What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
- Is body modification an Othering process? How so?
- Bishop references many scholars who argue against “gender intelligibility” to “harness the political potential of the unintelligible. . . .” What exactly does this mean and what political power does it make available?
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The Politics of Sexuality 
What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
I think in recent history deviance has little to do with being tattooed. In the article by Hill it’s noted that at one period the tattoo was the mark of a criminal or outlaw, sailors also got them to mark a significant event whilst at sea. This was probably the case as I had to hide my first tattoo from my mother for some time. I’m sure most of us with parents who grew up in the 50’s 60’s and earlier heard the same thing about people who have tattoos being deviants. I really believe this has changed drastically. Even my mother, an extremely conservative christian women, has changed her views slightly on tattoos, letting it slip she actually likes the one with my daughters name in it; however I’m still a godless, deviant outlaw for having tattoos, according to her. I also recall someone telling me once they read an article about parents who are heavily tattooed make worst parents then those with no tattoos. I call BS on this as well. All of that said if you take a walk around pretty much anywhere you’ll notice most people these days have some sort of ink on their body. I hardly doubt the 18 year old girl who has a unicorn with hearts around it is a hard core criminal. I guess I could be wrong though. Sure tattoos are still used in gang and prison culture. The guys who basically started the Japanese style of tattooing were the Yakuza, Japans answer to the mafia. Their traditional tattoos could be some of the popular style tattoos around right now! I even have some on me and I wouldn’t consider myself in any way shape or form a criminal, although my mother would probably disagree.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Deviance is the fact or state of departing from usual or accepted standards. When it comes to body modification in the United States, a man that gets an aesthetic surgery for a cosmetic purpose instead of for a necessary purpose, due to a physical health issues, is being deviant to the societal gender norms for men. For example, “The Human Ken Doll” got aesthetic procedures to change the size of his muscles and body shape to look like the male Barbie doll. More than likely, society expects men to go to the gym when they want to improve their physique, not to a plastic surgeon. Getting cosmetic procedures, as such, makes a man deviant. But if a man has erectile dysfunction and he decides to get a penial implant, it’s not considered deviant since it was necessary due to a physical impairment that could only be solved surgically. For a woman in the United States, it’s not considered deviant to get an aesthetic surgery because society knows that common aesthetic surgeries are done on women which modifies her breast size, facial structure, even her weight. Certain body modification makes a man more susceptible to being deviant because it’s not normal for men to go under the knife for aesthetic surgery than it is for women.
This paradigm, or pattern, does still apply because you have wealthy women here in the United States who want to pay a surgeon to modify their body to fit the description of how men and society depict beautiful women. While some men are in the gym working on their physique, men in similar shoes like the Human Ken Doll are advancing to make it acceptable for a man to get unnecessary aesthetic surgery and it not be seen as a deviant act.
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2. Is body modification an Othering process? How so?
Reasons for body modification vary among individuals, but those personal views can parallel with others’. The concept of ‘Othering’ can be described as a way for society to alienate people who stray from the ‘ideal’ and technically, body modification can fall into such category. For example, in “Body Modifications in College Students: Considering Gender, Self-esteem, Body Appreciation, and Reasons for Tattoos”, it was said that the most documented reasons for being tattooed, for both men and women, were self-expression, individuality, and uniqueness. A question rises as to how much can tattoos contribute to individuality and the ‘Other’ if of the studied population, 44% had tattoos (B.M.Hill & S.M. Ogletree & K.M. McCrary 249). The population that gave this reasoning did want to be apart of the “other”, but the large portion of the population having tattoos shows that this form of body modification might be becoming more normalized, thus straying from the Othering process. Though this is not the only type of body modification, tattoos have been less demonized by popularity in terms of social normativity. On the other hand, surgical body modification and the gendered Other, specifically transgender and transsexual body modification, are more apart of that Othering process by society. While the individuals undergoing these procedures find it as a way of normalizing their individual self-perception, society still alienates them and critiques their reasoning more heavily, such as in the previous articles regarding breast implants. Overall, it can be said that body modification can be held under the Othering category, but the severity varies.
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1. What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Deviance, the “departing from usual or accepted standards,” often directly correlates to rebellion. As discussed in class, we see different patterns when conversing about breast implants for women vs. penile implants for men. Women tend to have a more difficult time in society, in regards to the reasoning behind receiving the implant procedure. In the editorial titled “Bared breasts and body politics,” Kathy Davis claims that “the female body has historically been the site for the exercise of gendered and racialized power relations, involving violence, discipline, exclusion and normalization.” Now, tying this in with breast implants could be very simple. We could easily assume that women go through all of that pain and throw away money to simply have bigger breasts because in today’s society, if you don’t have breasts, are you truly playing your proper role? By receiving breast implants, are we really exercising our “power relations” and being rebellious? In the study labeled “The Effects of Aesthetic Breast Augmentation on Quality of Life, Psychological Distress, and Eating Disorder Symptoms: A Prospective Study,” a broad psychological test with women is portrayed through a scientific study. The analysis found that “aesthetic breast augmentation results in significant improvement in women’s body satisfaction and self-esteem. The level of risk for an eating disorder is also significantly reduced.” Clearly, women displayed a benefit or two after receiving breast augmentation, which could possibly attest to the fact that women modify their bodies for the sake of themselves, and only themselves. In addition, breast implants could be necessary in cases of tragedies like cancer, and just wanting to feel normalized again. Now, if we switch gears to men, body modification seems to obtain less obvious controversy. It can be argued that men receive penile implants due to the complete loss of function within their organ. In the study titled “Current Management of Penile Implant Infections, Device Reliability, and Optimizing Cosmetic Outcome,” the medical aspect is heavily weighted, unlike the study about mammoplasty where body modification allows for an increase of ultimate self-satisfaction. Furthermore, rebellion is not as apparent with penile implants as it is with breast implants because it is clearly not as controversial, which could be due to the fact that visually, breast augmentation is more common. In class, we discussed how it could possibly be selfish for a man to want that sexual ability back, but it could ultimately be selfless, wanting his partner to not have a sudden change in lifestyle or sex drive. Why is it so wrong for men to desire their organ functionality once again? At the end of the day, body modification is often seen as deviant with women, but not as much with men due to a social construct built around the politics of gender.
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In terms of what deviance has to do with body modification, the authors of Body Modification in College Students: Considering Gender, Self-Esteem, Body Appreciation, And Reasons for Tattoos” note that, “At one point, tattoos were markers of out-groups of individuals considered deviant from society and affiliated with criminal activity” (246). In other words, before tattoos became more of the mainstream cultural phenomenon that they are now, modifying your body by tattooing it was a way to signal to others that you did not play by society’s rules. As for whether or not this paradigm still applies, I would say that it does in some cases. However, there are factors such as race and class that influence how we read tattooed bodies differently. For instance, one is likely to draw certain inferences about a young, Black, impoverished man with lots of tattoos that they might not draw from a young, white, college-educated barista with multiple tattoos who serves them at Starbucks. So, in a lot of ways, I think that this paradigm still does apply. It just doesn’t apply equally to everyone. In a broader sense, though, in a society where tattoos have become much more of a common practice, the act represents less of a deviation and can even function as the opposite. The authors in the aforementioned article note that “social learning theory may be more applicable for explaining the more mainstream acquisition of and acceptance of tattoos” (246). This seems to suggest that, instead of deviating from cultural trends, many individuals who modify their bodies via tattoos are actually conforming to them. If true, this would be the opposite of deviation.
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Question #2: Is body modification an Othering process? How so?
The process of ‘Othering’ can be described as forming a group that can allow you to align yourself with other individuals who stray from the ultimate, and body modification can fall into this category in some cases. In the article, “Body Modifications in College Students” the author concludes that the top reasons for people getting tattoos were self-expression, to be unique and being an individual (246). Though, tattoos are becoming more normalized now, they were a part of that Othering process by society in the early years. In the same article, the authors state that, “tattoos were markers of out-groups of individuals considered deviant from society and affiliated with criminal activity” (246). This means that the individuals with tattoos were the ones who were more affiliated with criminal activities. Moreover, the gendered ‘Other’ such as transgender and transexual body modification, and other surgical body modification are becoming more a part of that Othering process in today’s world. As these are slowly starting to become normalized, there are still people out there who critique their reasons for choosing these body modification. That being said, we can conclude that body modification is an Othering process in some cases.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Deviance is seen as the state in which people distance themselves from the typical welcoming standards. When a man or woman is trying to be deviant to his or her body, that person is altering their figure to fit that of the so-called “perfect” individual. When a person has a vision that they do not fit the typical standards for today’s society, that person will often change their way of life starting with the most eye-catching element that is seen on a person, which is their body.
It is deviant for a man who has always wanted to have a physique that can be gained through hard work by going to the gym, to alter his body by having surgeries that will give him abs or big arms. Take for example the YouTube video that featured Ken The Living Doll. He wanted a body that was similar to that of the Ken Doll and by doing that he was being deviant to society and himself by altering his normal body that instead, could be transformed by going to the gym. Athletes who take PEDs are also seen as being deviant because it gives them an unfair disadvantage when it comes to the sport that is being played. However, if a woman gets surgeries to make their breasts or butt bigger people see that as being normal because men have showed a liking to women that display such figure. This paradigm does in fact apply because of the hard work that could be done to gain muscles without having to cheat your way out of it. If the issue is medical, then it is not deviant for a person to alter their bodies because that will help their well being which simply cannot be judged.
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Is Body Modifications an Othering Process? How so?
Body modifications is an othering process as today in this generation, people or a certain group have a way to differentiate or alienate another person because their body image isn’t the idealist norm of what they perceive the body should look like. This can create an opposition between individuals who don’t fall into the category of the custom body image that society advertises through social media or even television. Society expectations can alternate a person’s mind into thinking about modifying their bodies to reach the idealistic image of what society labels what is beautiful or attractive; creating two groups differentiating the ‘us’ and ‘them’ mentality. For example, that mentality of ‘us’ is the modifications of having tattoos on the body, and the ‘them’ are the people without any tattoos on the body. The media and celebrities are a big influence of how body modifications are an othering are process. In the article “Body Modifications in College Students”, talks about how in sub-culture identifying one’s body in getting tattoos is to be relevant to a certain group is what is ordinary and acceptable to do so. “In this central Texas college student sample, 44% of the participants had tattoos, providing support that tattoos have become more common, accepted, and mainstream” (Hill, Ogletree, McCrary 251). Getting tattoos has become very normalized and popular in today’s culture as a large percentage of college students in the article are of who supports and has them. Certain people think that celebrities are role models to certain people, and how their actions can be imitated by. “In addition, in the entertainment field body modifications are a common trend, and individuals who hold role models with tattoos in high regular may be more likely to imitate their behavior by obtaining tattoos themselves” (Hill, Ogletree, McCrary 247). Individuals that look up to their favorite celebrity that has tattoos, want to imitate their looks and behavior because they want to fall into that group of having a tattoo. Since their favorite celebrity has one they think they should get one too, believing they’ll fit right into the image of being normal and accepted in societies view point. In the article, it also talks about “Popular reasons for getting tattooed include self-expression and representations of bond/connections with family or friends” (Hill, Ogletree, McCrary 247). Not only othering process is significant in how media or celebrates persuade individuals to have their body’s look a certain way, Body modification can be an othering process in having a connection with your family or friends who have tattoos. However, in order to have that connection or bond with them that person has to get a tattoo to feel the union between them. They are people who feel the need to have that connection and union with their friends and family members without having the feeling singled out, because they don’t have tattoos on their body resulting in not to have that connection of what it is like to have a tattoo with them. So having or getting tattooed is a way to feel accepted into the norm of what everybody is doing and having that body ideal body image of having tattoo.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Our world is full of creative artistic and innovative people. Some like to paint and draw, others like to incorporate this onto their body in the form of tattoos. For many years, tattoos have been considered abnormal body modification : “at one point, tattoos were markers of out-groups of individuals considered deviant from society and affiliated with criminal activity (Demello, 1993; Swami, 2011).
However, with the turn of 21 century, tattoos and body piercings have become a “fashionable statement”. From music industry to reality tv shows like “Inked”, people can be seen using tattoos as a way of expressing their feelings: love, dreams, goals, important events from their life. It can be a name or a face of a loved one, or a simple verse from a bible. “Popular reasons for getting tattooed include self-expression and representations of bonds/connections with friends or family (Dickson, Dukes, Smith, & Strapko, 2015; King & Vidourek, 2013)”.
No more do we look at people with flashy, vibrant and inspiring “body paintings” as an outcast or a criminal. Even though, older people are less likely to use this form of expression, the new generation of young people will use this type of body modification as norm and not a paradigm by which one is judged or socially evaluated.
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Traditionally people associated tattoos, piercings and other body modifications with deviance. Hill, Olgetree, & McCrary state that, “at one point tattoos were markers of out-groups of individuals considered deviant from society and affiliated with criminal activity (Demello, 1993; Swami, 2011)” but now that cultural climate is changing. More and more people are modifying their bodies, especially using tattoos. According to Laumann and Derick (2006) there is a 24% tattoo a number taken from a national sample in the U.S (Hill, Olgetree, & McCrary, 247) and in the study presented in the article 132 out of 300 people reported having tattoos which is 44%; strikingly close to almost half the study population (p. 249). Although 300 people is a small sample it shows how popular tattooing has become, especially amongst college students. Based on these statistics it is safe to argue that tattooing is no longer only associated with deviance. Instead it is also associated with “art in alternative lifestyles and pop culture (Swami, 2011; Swami & Harris, 2012; Wohlrab, Stahl, & Kappeler, 2007)” as well as self-expression (p. 246). Not only is tattooing not associated with deviance, it is emerging on the professional scene. The college students surveyed in this study are the professionals and business people of tomorrow which turns the assumption of deviance with body modification completely on its head.
Body Modifications in College Students: Considering Gender, Self-Esteem, Body Appreciation, and Reasons for Tattoos by Brittany M. Hill, S. M. Ogletree, & K. M. McCrary.
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Is body modification an Othering process? How so?
In order to address this question, we must start by understanding what the Othering process is. In a blog article “othering” is described as “any action by which an individual or group becomes mentally classified in somebody’s mind as ‘not one of us.'” By this definition, body modification is definitely an Othering process because the majority of people get them in order to express their individual creativity and enhance their uniqueness. Although body modifications are becoming more of the norm today, there are still places within our current society where explicit examples of Othering due to these mods occur. One example is the workplace. It’s very rare for someone with many visible tattoos and piercings to get a professional job. Body modifications are seen as unprofessional and outside of the norm causing managers to not want to hire people with them. Even if the managers are okay with body modifications themselves, many of their clients or customers may not be because these modifications set them apart.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
In the paper Body Modifications in College Students (Brittany M Hill, SM Ogletree, KM McCrary) the writers open up with examples of how, in earlier times, tattoos were seen as adorning only the deviant; criminals in prison who marked themselves to show their affiliation with gangs or the mob. Today, that paradigm sometimes applies but in different ways as so many individuals sport tattoo’s on their body. It is considered not strange at all for a person to have at least one tattoo on their body, though if someone was to cover themselves in tattoo’s and maybe get some form of prosthetics put on their body (horns, spikes, whiskers) maybe someone looking at them wouldn’t necessarily consider them deviant, but they would possibly question the person’s mental health. Some jobs require their employees to not wear facial piercings or have visible tattoo’s still to this day.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
We should first start by defining deviance, which is going against usual standards. Where deviance has a lot to do with body modification. In the “Body Modifications In College Students” article it mentions how “tattoos were markers of out-groups of individuals considered deviant from society and affiliated with criminal activity” (Hill, Ogletree, McCrary 246). Where tattoos didn’t have a good reputation when they first started to come out because they were going against what is the norm in society as well they were associated with crime. Throughout the years this paradigm is starting to become less and less deviant from society, especially with the younger generation. People are now a days are starting to use tattoos to express themselves and is shedding the criminal imagine it had when they first started. So slowly over time tattoos will not be deviant from society.
When you look at plastic surgery as drastic as “The Human Ken Doll” that is still deviant from society today. Where in the YouTube videos he says that people question him on why he is getting all of this plastic surgery done. In this scenario he is deviant from society but with tattoos it’s becomes less deviant. Overall, over time things become less and less deviant from society and start to become a norm. It just takes time for society to adjust and then eventually it will become standard.
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What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Till this day, body modifications such as tattoos or piercings other than the ears, are considered to be deviant ways of self-expression. Many people have negative connotations when it comes to these body modifications. Before many companies refrained from hiring people with any of these modifications that are visible because they considered it to be unprofessional or as the article “Body Modifications in College Students…” put it, people who had tattoo were thought to be associated with ” higher in risk taking tendencies including legal (multiple sexual partners) and illegal (being arrested, drug use) activities” . It can be agreed that maybe before this paradigm did apply to deviance. Although, it is said in the article that now these different forms of art that were once seen on deviant social groups, are now becoming more “mainstream”. Since many celebrities or role models in media are getting these body modifications on themselves, they are popularizing this making it a trend the others will imitate. In the same article, both men and women were surveyed at university classroom with 300 students and the most frequent answer as to why they got a tattoo (for those who had, 44%) was “To express myself”. In this day and age, it is very common for people to express themselves by getting a tattoo and is really no longer linked to societal deviance as it was before.
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Is body modification an Othering process? How so?
Yes, body modification is an Othering process. I say this because society tends to believe that Othering process in terms of body modification defines a group of people that acknowledge modifying flesh as the ‘right’ way to be human. The Article states how “tattoos have developed into a commonplace form of art in alternative lifestyle and pop culture” (McCrary 246). Which means, modifying your body with either tattoos or a piercings, is a way for that person to express his or herself or show his/her uniqueness differentiating individuals from others. Physical Alteration does not make one more or less of a person, but like Lea Michele quoted, “ Uniqueness is what makes you the most beautiful. Some may think otherwise but others see some phrases such as that in the media and run with it while viewing it as a self-fulfilling prophecy. An experiment in this article reported that “individuals with tattoos, compared to those without, will score higher on need for uniqueness” (McCrary 248). Having a tattoo helps those individuals stand out, which in society’s eyes is of great importance to be noticed. “In the entertainment field body modifications are a common trend, and individuals who hold role models with tattoos in high regard may be more likely to imitate their behavior by obtaining tattoos themselves” (McCrary 247). This quote is basically illustrating how individualism and creativity is viewed in a positive light in society. Society and media is what some people use to shape their lives.
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1. What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Deviance is defined as “the fact or state of departing from usual or accepted standards, especially in social or sexual behavior.” Applied to body modifications, deviance is considered the alteration or transformation of the natural body. For example: implants, tattoos, and piercings (besides those on the ears). I would say this paradigm does still apply. While it is much more common to hear of women getting breast implants and butt enhancements, as well as other procedures to modify their bodies, there is still an overall harsh judgement and concern for women who do. The only way to avoid this judgement is when a procedure is related to a critical medical condition, as in most cases, cancer. Any other reason is considered superficial and only for aesthetic purposes, despite the multiple long term benefits women feel after undergoing breast implants. In the article, “The Effects of Aesthetic Breast Augmentation on Quality of Life, Psychological Distress, and Eating Disorder Symptoms: A Prospective Study,” it states that, “aesthetic breast augmentation results in significant improvement in women’s body satisfaction and self-esteem. The level of risk for an eating disorder is also significantly reduced.” It’s almost as if these benefits are so minuscule that women should rather stay in their depressed states and/or with a risk of eating disorder to satisfy society’s disapproval of a women’s body modifications, a problem society causes to begin with by holding women to such high and impossibly to attain beauty standards. Whereas men aren’t questioned or judged upon their decision for penile implants because it is almost seen as “selfless” for a man to want his penile functions for the use of pleasure. In the study, “Current Management of Penile Implant Infections, Device Reliability, and Optimizing Cosmetic Outcome,” it is discussed how and why men get penile implants and the primary cause is decided to be for erectile dysfunction, only for medical purposes. As if it is not directly tied to male pleasure. Breasts implants for “aesthetic” purposes are seen more as a deviance than penile implants for erectile dysfunction because one is believed to benefit functionally and one is not. Compared to this, we saw in class on YouTube, the Human Ken Doll. This man decided to go under the knife over one hundred times in order to resemble Barbie’s Ken doll as much as humanly possible, to be the life-sized human version. Much of his bodily implants went towards the muscle structure he wanted, going into his biceps, triceps, abs, etc. A lot of this can be worked for through excercise and a healthy diet, however, the Human Ken Doll preferred to go a different route and surgically recreate what he dreamed of. This example is completely superficial and for aesthetic purposes, yet he is still not judged as harshly as a woman was for wanting to get breast implants. He is praised for his honesty and creativity. Society has not yet accepted body modifications in terms of surgical procedures, especially on women, and for as long as that goes on, it would still be considered deviant to attempt/ succeed in altering one’s body.
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Question #2
Body modification can be an Othering process, but it does not have to be. This is usually based on an individual’s intentions for body modification. In the article “Body Modification and Trans Men: They Lived Realities of Gender Transition and Partner Intimacy,” Katelynn Bishop explores body modification for trans men. Many times, trans men go through “body modifications in order to achieve ‘coherent,’ ‘legible,’ or ‘intelligible’ bodies that accord with their performances of gender and thus mirror dominant cultural view of gender” (Bishop 65). In a sense, many trans men want to pass as cisgender men. So much work is put in by the partners of trans men “to validate trans men’s gender identities,” in order to achieve this goal (64). This is an example of body modification not being Othering. Instead, these trans are looking to transition completely into the category of man without disrupting gender norms. However, some trans men intentionally chose to live anatomically between genders. They do not want to “assimilate [their] trans bodies into dominant notions of gender” (66). Some may decide to not use testosterone and not get top or bottom surgery. Others may do one while rejecting to do the others. In this case, body modification can become Othering due to a trans man’s decision to exist somewhere between what is seen as normal for either gender.
The same can be said for body modifications such as tattoos. In the article, “Body Modifications in College Students: Considering Gender, Self-Esteem, Body Appreciation, and Reasons for Tattoos,” Brittany M. Hill and two other colleagues surveyed a group of college kids to get a sense of why people get tattoos. Some college kids reveal that they decided to get tattoos “because [their] friends are tattooed” (Hill 249). Hill and her colleagues also suggest, “In the field entertainment field body modifications are a common trend, and individuals who hold role models with tattoos in high regard may be more likely to imitate their behavior by obtaining tattoos themselves” (247). In both scenarios, getting a tattoo is an attempt to have a sense of belonging. These students are not getting tattoos to set themselves apart, but rather, to blend in. However, tattoos can be Othering when the intention is “to express [oneself] and “to be an individual” (251). In these cases, the goal is to create a sense of otherness. Here, this Othering process is intentional to create a uniqueness that makes the students feel separate from their peers.
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1. What does deviance have to do with body modification? Does that paradigm still apply?
Body modifications of various kinds are used as a form of deviation. Tattoos and piercings can be used as a way to deviate from having a conventional appearance, and body modification in terms of gender expression, or transition is used to deviate from the gender role society imposes on one, however this is not always the intent of these body mods, nor the way they are read by others. As is mentioned in “BODY MODIFICATIONS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS: CONSIDERING GENDER, SELF-ESTEEM, BODY APPRECIATION, AND REASONS FOR TATTOOS” tattoos have overall “become more common, accepted, and mainstream” (251, Hill et. all), so this paradigm of deviance does not apply as far as the general person who gets a few tattoos. However, more extreme cases of tattooing, such as where people tattoo their entire bodies, or tattoo body parts like their eyeballs, tongues, full faces etc. are still seen as examples of deviance. The same goes with body piercings. While a few non-ear piercings have become commonplace, the more visible piercings, the more a person becomes perceived as deviant. However, this is all also determinant on the community. For example, getting a tattoo for someone who’s religion dictates that one should not mark the skin would be seen as deviant behavior among their community. Conversely, being covered in tattoos/piercings would not be seen as deviant in the tattooing industry, but not having any tattoos/piercings might be.
Body modification in terms of gender expression can be approached from two different directions. On one hand, some may see a person who takes hormones, or gets some form of major surgery (plastic surgery, gender reassignment surgery, hysterectomy etc.) as deviant, whether it’s deviating from “god” or from some other general norm. However, it could be argued that in going through all these measures in order to fit the appearance that society dictates a person’s gender identity should look like, a person is trying to avoid any sort of deviance.
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