The
readings we had this week each involved some aspect of body modification; one
where the author tattooed herself for self-expression and the other about
cutting, where the author was unhappy with life, school, herself and the thing
that made her feel better was cutting herself. Both readings made me think
about having control and power over one's body.
In Marked for Life: Tattoos and the Redefinition of Self by Silja J.A.
Talvi; she talks about how getting tattooed she was "consciously taking a
small step away from her emotional suffering and toward a radical new
self-definition" (212). Tattoos in today's society are still seen as
unladylike because women are still expected to have unblemished perfect skin.
The author believes that women who get tattoos usually represent marginalized
groups such as lesbians, female gang members, punks, runaways and other groups
whose lifestyle or beliefs leave them on the fringes of society (212). The
author always felt a sense of exclusion in her life starting with her childhood
in Scandinavia and following her to her teenage years in California. She seemed
to find a sense of belonging in the punk and Rastafarian scene and these
principles provided her with a firmer sense of place and purpose in life. The
author states that in a world that offers women few concrete ways to exert
control and power over their lives, tattoos can bring a real sense of strength,
identity and dignity (214). The way the author took control over her body in a
world where she felt out of control was by tattooing things on her body that
marked certain passages in her life.
In Unwanted by Precious Angel, she talks about how she was very
depressed about everything, life, school and home life and the only way she
felt any comfort was when she cut herself. After the school counselor
questioned her and found out she was cutting herself she was taken to the
hospital and then the police took her home and her aunt still did not show any
compassion towards her. After all of that and after all the counseling she went
through she was still depressed and attempted suicide. I feel like the author
felt out of control in her life, she was away from her family and being raised
by an aunt who could care less about her and the only way she could exert power
over her body was by cutting herself.
Both of these readings made me think
about the various things that we all do to have control and power over our
bodies, especially when we are in situations where we feel like we are
powerless and out of control.
Word
Count: 509
Works
Cited:
Lakota,
Sicangu. "Unwanted." My Sisters' Voices: Teenage Girls of Color Speak
out. By Iris Jacob. New York: H. Holt, 2002. 201-03. Print.
Talvi,
Silja J.A. "Marked for Life: Tattoos and the Redefinition of Self."
Body Outlaws:
Rewriting
the Rules of Beauty and Body Image. By Ophira Edut. 2nd ed. Emeryville, CA:
Seal, 2003. 211-18. Print.
