An Analysis of Susan Bordo’s Essay, “Feminism, Foucault and the Politics of the Body”

Excerpts from the Paper

An Analysis of Susan Bordo’s Essay, “Feminism, Foucault and the Politics of the Body”
Introduction
The influence of Michael Foucault’s work on the close relationship between sexuality, the body, politics and feminine power in a social context on overall feminist thought is apparent in Susan Bordo’s essay, “Feminism, Foucault and the Politics of the Body.” This paper will analyze Bordo’s essay in the context of the issues she brings up regarding the politics of the body and its sociological and historical precedents. Bordo covers a lot of ground in her essay in presenting a political history of the female body and the “capitalistic” aspects of it. She both agrees and expands on the ideas of Foucault and his views on the body and especially...

.....mselves by not resisting the use of the power. While the politics of appearance are significant to feminism, as Bordo expanded on Foucault’s ideas and made them more applicable to women (it is unclear whether Foucault was always speaking about women or both men and women), it seems that the essence of her thesis lies in an understanding of the various sociological, cultural, marketing, advertising and still male-dominated forces that influence how women feel about their bodies. Unfortunately, Bordo argues that this feeling is not always positive.
Reference
Bordo, Susan. “Feminism, Foucault and the Politics of the Body.” Feminist Postcolonial Theory: A Reader. Eds. Price, Janet and Shildrick, Margrit US: Taylor & Francis, 1999. 246- 257.