The Abject Embodiment of Cancer Patients: Dignity, Selfhood, and the Grotesque Body

The body is the empirical quintessence of the self. Because selfhood is symbolic, embodiment represents the personification and materialization of otherwise invisible qualities of personhood. The body and experiences of embodiment are central to our sense of being, who we think we are, and what othe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Symbolic interaction 2002-11, Vol.25 (4), p.487-513
Main Authors: Waskul, Dennis D., van der Riet, Pamela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
(HM) Sociology
Body Image
Cancer
Death
Diseases
Emotional expression
Fear
Impression Management
Massage
Pain and suffering
Patients
Research Article
Self
Self Concept
Self Evaluation
Self Presentation
Selfhood
Social interaction
Stigma
Terminal Illness
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Summary:The body is the empirical quintessence of the self. Because selfhood is symbolic, embodiment represents the personification and materialization of otherwise invisible qualities of personhood. The body and experiences of embodiment are central to our sense of being, who we think we are, and what others attribute to us. What happens, then, when one's body is humiliating? How does the self handle the implications of a gruesome body? How do people manage selfhood in light of grotesque physical appearances? This study explores these questions in the experiences of dying cancer patients and seeks to better understand relationships among body, self, and situated social interaction.
ISSN:0195-6086
1533-8665
DOI:10.1525/si.2002.25.4.487