Bodily Knowledge: Learning about Equity and Justice with Adolescent Girls. Adolescent Cultures, School and Society, Vol. 11

__Bodily Knowledge__ is a story of how four adolescent girls constructed the meanings of their bodies. It is a story of oppression and resistance, voice and silence. It is a story of how our culture shapes girls’ desires and distracts girls from becoming healthy people who pursue significant goals. Lastly, it is an expression of the girls’ hopefulness – of their collective belief in the value of efforts to create a better world in which all children might have opportunities to grow up healthy and respected. __Bodily Knowledge__ tells these stories in terms of the girls’ analyses of fashion, their desires to be noticed and accepted by others, their concerns about issues of race and racism, and our own commitments to nurturing critique and agency through curriculum and activist research. This book examines how four adolescent girls constructed the meaning of their bodies, discussing oppression and resistance, voice and silence, and girls' desires to be seen and heard for who they are as they experience themselves individually and socially. It presents the struggles of two educational researchers trying to create ethical research practices that nurtured the growth of agency among project participants. A salient element for them in this work was helping girls develop as active agents in their own worlds. Chapter 1 introduces the issue. Chapter 2 critiques five theoretical issues: 1) adolescence as a period of crisis; 2) dichotomous thinking and objectification; 3) feminist understandings of the body; 4) body image research; and 5) constructions of health. Chapter 3 describes how one researcher worked with the girls, noting issues the researchers experienced in doing this work. Chapter 4 explores various nuances and complexities of how fashion permeates adolescent culture. Chapter 5 highlights how girls' desires to be noticed operate in attracting the attention of boys, separating girls from each other, and encouraging body regulation. Chapter 6 describes what the researchers learned about race and racism, noting how racial pride coexisted with racial oppression. Chapter 7 examines strategies and directions that curriculum workers might take to support the development of agency among adolescent girls. (Contains 126 references.) (SM)

bodily Knowledge Is A Story Of How Four Adolescent Girls Constructed The Meanings Of Their Bodies. It Is A Story Of Oppression And Resistance, Voice And Silence. It Is A Story Of How Our Culture Shapes Girls' Desires And Distracts Girls From Becoming Healthy People Who Pursue Significant Goals. Lastly, It Is An Expression Of The Girls' Hopefulness - Of Their Collective Belief In The Value Of Efforts To Create A Better World In Which All Children Might Have Opportunities To Grow Up Healthy And Respected. Bodily Knowledge Tells These Stories In Terms Of The Girls' Analyses Of Fashion, Their Desires To Be Noticed And Accepted By Others, Their Concerns About Issues Of Race And Racism, And Our Own Commitments To Nurturing Critique And Agency Through Curriculum And Activist Research.--book Jacket.

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based On Conversations With, And The Journals Of, Four Adolescent Girls, Education Professors At The U. Of Alabama And Virginia Tech, Respectively, Identify Destructive Culturally-mediated Female Growth Patterns, Discuss Body Image Research Issues, And Suggest Making The Body A Topic In An Integrated Curriculum Of Transformation. Annotation C. Book News, Inc., Portland, Or (booknews.com)

Annotation "Bodily Knowledge is a story of how four adolescent girls constructed the meanings of their bodies. It is a story of oppression and resistance, voice and silence. It is a story of how our culture shapes girls' desires and distracts girls from becoming healthy people who pursue significant goals. Lastly, it is an expression of the girls' hopefulness - of their collective belief in the value of efforts to create a better world in which all children might have opportunities to grow up healthy and respected. Bodily Knowledge tells these stories in terms of the girls' analyses of fashion, their desires to be noticed and accepted by others, their concerns about issues of race and racism, and our own commitments to nurturing critique and agency through curriculum and activist research."--BOOK JACKET. Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved