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13 Things 2008
Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology
Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology & the Ancient World
Brown University
Box 1837 / 60 George Street
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: (401) 863-3188
Fax: (401) 863-9423
[email protected]
OK, I am taking a pretty big departure from the way that my project was structured before. The scope was too wide, and there was far too much material that spoke to a very wide array of angles and aspects of humanness.
I am going to narrow down my focus to the bathroom mirror, and discuss issues of self-monitoring, vigilance, and the power of images. This angle was of most interest to me because it is the most personal example of mirror usage, and it is such a common experience for so many people. This angle on mirrors thus provides a very intimate and important entry point into the formation of identities.
A bathroom mirror is a very personal application of the mirror, because it provides the location and apparatus for people to affect their bodies. One is able to literally form a physical projection of the body, which enables alteration and manipulation in a very accurate and extensive manner.
The formation of identity in relation to social norms is key to the concept of body image; I will explore the social meanings of beauty, hygiene, productivity, diet/consumption, disgust, and other institutionalized identities, and then investigate how the mirror enables people to monitor and discipline their bodies in relation to them. One very strong starting point here is Jeremy Bentham's panopticon, and Foucault's social application of it. These theories discuss the ways that people internalize authority and translate external social power into internal discipline.
Different bodies and physical identities (including clothing and other accessories) are associated with different power relations. The power of different body images provides some insight into why people would use mirrors to affect their bodies. For example, a man with thinning hair often loses power with respect to patriarchalism and masculinity, so a mirror would enable that man to affect his image to regain power.
Other issues will include: personal hygiene, productivity and post-industrial bodies, and race/gender politics.
Back to the mirror
Posted at Oct 16/2008 06:49PM:
Emma Whitford: In Greek Mythology there is the myth of Narcissus, the man who waists away while admiring his own reflection in a river. Of course narcissism comes from this.