The most basic assertions about our bodies--that they are ours
and distinguish us from each other, that they are private and have
boundaries, races, and genders--are all political theories,
constructed in legal texts for political purposes. So argues Alan
Hyde in this first account of the body in legal thought. Hyde
demonstrates that none of the constructions of the body in legal
texts are universal truths that rest solely on body experience.
Drawing on an array of fascinating case material, he shows that
legal texts can construct all kinds of bodies, including those that
are not owned at all, that are just like other bodies, that are
public, open, and accessible to others. Further, the language,
images, and metaphors of the body in legal texts can often convince
us of positions to which we would not assent as a matter of
political theory.
Through analysis of legal texts, Hyde shows, for example, how
law's words construct the vagina as the most searchable body part;
the penis as entirely under mental control; the bone marrow that
need not be shared with a half-sibling who will die without it; and
urine that must be surrendered for drug testing in rituals of
national purification. This book will interest anyone concerned
with cultural studies, gender studies, ethnic studies, and
political theory, or anyone who has heard the phrase "body
constructed in discourse" and wants to see, step by step, exactly
how this is done.
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