(De) Parsing bodies

Abstract

The aim of this special issue of Skepsi dedicated to the body is twofold: on the one hand, our intention is to contribute to challenging the conception of the body as a rock-like and autonomous unity, a conception that, starting with Descartes, has deeply characterised philosophical tradition;1 on the other, we believe that, in order to investigate the perspectival nature of the body, it is necessary to adopt an interdisciplinary approach; for this reason we welcomed not only academic articles, but also creative works both textual and visual. The inspiration for this issue was a conference entitled The Body: Exploring Culture and Research held at the University of Kent in October 2011, a conference which our Guest Editor Dara Blumenthal organised. However, it was not intended that the issue would necessarily be confined either to the proceedings of the conference in particular or to academic articles in general. [Excerpt from Foreword]