The female body as a historically mediated form

In Chapter 4, the author explores the argument that the female body is historically mediated, as the relationships between anorexia, agoraphobia and hysteria are unpacked as devices aimed at keeping women at a dis-ease with both their bodies and their position within society. Here, anorexia as a cultural-bound syndrome is further solidified and theories surrounding why this might be the case is discussed as the broader political dimensions of anorexia and self-starvation are explored. The second half of this chapter focuses on the question of whether there is any psychological benefit or spirituality to result from the anorexic experience in the context of “cutting” and other self-harm practices. This work draws upon the notion of religious sacred pain as the author explores the work of Ariel Glucklich on integrative and disintegrative pain types.