Paper short abstract:

I explore the assumptions and potentials for resistance vis-a-vis what constitutes ‘good health’ which I define as a socially produced state of idealised expectations and patterns of consumption dominated by gendered and technophilic knowledge regimes that reproduce coercive Western standards of health.

Paper long abstract:

In this talk, I explore the expressed assumptions, values, and modes of resistance with respect to what constitutes ‘good health’ which I define as a socially produced state of idealized expectations, performances, embodiments, and patterns of consumption dominated by gendered and technophilic knowledge regimes that reproduce regimented and coercive Western standards of health and beauty. I begin with an examination of ‘good health’ in relation to medical and socio-cultural performance in which expectations around sickness and wellness are articulated and enacted. I do so in light of social expectations and trends (i.e. through the lens of clean eating), the patient’s perspective, neoliberalism, fatness and affect. Also considered is the so-called ‘obesity epidemic’ and its place in normative health practices as well as some prospective alternatives conceptions of health rooted in more capacious theories of embodiment and bodily integrity. Particular attention is paid to normative bodies, reductionist whiteness, and the social determinants of ill health. I illustrate this by drawing on examples of social movements that successfully challenge this hegemonic definition.