Spartan Mirages: Fat, Masculinity, and “Softness"
Keywords:
Downloads
Abstract
Building upon previous research on structural tensions between the male body and certain features of ‘modernity’ as well as more recent inquiries into fat and gender in the West, this cross-disciplinary ‘thought piece’ argues that fatness and certain ‘masculine’ ideals have existed in a state of tension since ancient times, and that recurring references to the therapeutic violence of ‘Spartan’ techniques reflect the extent to which such ideas continue to circulate in the present. The first section shows that this tension is most clearly illuminated when we consider how the qualities of fat - as well as the act of fattening - have related to classical ideals about masculinity. The second offers examples of how references to Spartan ‘hardness’ have been cited since the eighteenth century as methods of restoring otherwise ‘soft’ males to a more appropriately vigorous mental and bodily state. Without arguing for an unbroken or unproblematic continuity between ancient and modern culture, it suggests that classical references represent what Pierre Bourdieu sees as ‘the product of an incessant (and thus historical) work of reproduction’.Downloads
References
Andrade, A. (2007). 300 movie review, Stylus Magazine, March 13, 2007.
Google Scholar Crossref<<http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/movie_review/300.htm>>. Last consulted April 18, 2010.
Google Scholar CrossrefAnonymous (1765). Lâche. In D. Diderot and J. le Rond d’Alembert (Eds.), Encyclopédie,
Google Scholar Crossrefou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers, Neufchâtel: chez Samuel Faulche, IX.
Google Scholar CrossrefAnonymous (1872). Foreign Notes. Every Saturday: A Journal of Choice Reading, 1, 138-9.
Google Scholar CrossrefAnonymous (1906). How to be Healthy at All Ages: A Symposium of Eminent Doctors. The
Google Scholar CrossrefStrand Magazine, 31, 297-308.
Google Scholar CrossrefAthenaeus (1933). The Deipnosophists. C.B. Gulick (Trans.), Cambridge, MA: Harvard
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press, V.
Google Scholar CrossrefBederman, G. (1995). Manliness and Civilization: A Cultural History of Gender and Race in
Google Scholar Crossrefthe United States, 1880–1917. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefBeaude, J.-P. (1849). Obésité. In J.-P. Beaude (Ed.), Dictionnaire de médecine usuelle à
Google Scholar Crossrefl’usage des gens du monde (pp.529-30), Paris: Didier, II.
Google Scholar CrossrefBell, K. and McNaughton, D. (2007). Feminism and the Invisible Fat Man. Body & Society,
Google Scholar Crossref, 107-31.
Google Scholar CrossrefBerry, C.J. (1994). The Idea of Luxury: A Conceptual and Historical Investigation.
Google Scholar CrossrefCambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefBordo, S. (1993). Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body. Berkeley:
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity of California Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefBourdieu, P. (1998). La domination masculine. Paris: Seuil.
Google Scholar CrossrefBraziel, J.E. (2001). Sex and Fat Chics: Deterritorializing the Fat Female Body. In J.E.
Google Scholar CrossrefBraziel and K. LeBesco (Eds.), Bodies out of Bounds: Fatness and Transgression (pp.231-54). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefBynum, C.W. (1995). The Resurrection of the Body in Western Christianity, 200-1336. New
Google Scholar CrossrefYork: Columbia University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefCadden, J. (1993). Meanings of Sex Difference in the Middle Ages. Cambridge: Cambridge
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefCarden-Coyne, A. (2009). Reconstructing the Body: Classicism, Modernism, and the First
Google Scholar CrossrefWorld War. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefChernin, K. (1981). The Obsession: Reflections on the Tyranny of Slenderness. New York:
Google Scholar CrossrefHarper.
Google Scholar CrossrefCornish, W.R. (1864). Observations on the Nature of the Food of the Inhabitants of Southern
Google Scholar CrossrefIndia, and on Prison Dietaries, in the Madras Presidency. The Madras Quarterly Journal of Medical Science, 8, 1-73.
Google Scholar CrossrefCritser, G. (2003). Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World. New
Google Scholar CrossrefYork: Houghton Mifflin.
Google Scholar CrossrefCrossley, N. (2006). Reflexive embodiment in contemporary society. Maidenhead, UK: Open
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefCrowley, J.E. (2001). The Invention of Comfort: Sensibilities and Design in Early Modern
Google Scholar CrossrefBritain and Early America. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefDavidson, J. (1997). Courtesans and Fishcakes: The Consuming Passions of Classical
Google Scholar CrossrefAthens. New York: HarperPerennial.
Google Scholar CrossrefDavis, J.F. (1837). La Chine, ou description générale. A. Pichard (Trans.), Paris: Librairie
Google Scholar CrossrefPaulin, I.
Google Scholar CrossrefDean-Jones, L. (1994). Women's Bodies in Classical Greek Science. Oxford: Clarendon
Google Scholar CrossrefPress.
Google Scholar CrossrefDobres, J. (2007). 300: More abs than you can handle. jon22.net, March 12.
Google Scholar Crossref<<http://www.jon22.net/300-more-abs-than-you-can-handle/>>. Last consulted April 18, 2010.
Google Scholar CrossrefDoheney, K. (n.d.). The 300 Workout: Can you Handle it? WebMD: Better Information,
Google Scholar CrossrefBetter Health. <<http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/the-300-workout-can-you-handle-it>>. Last consulted August 28, 2012.
Google Scholar CrossrefFarrell, A.E. (2011). Fat Shame: Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture. New York:
Google Scholar CrossrefNYU Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefFischler, C. (1987). La symbolique du gros. Communications, 46, 255-78.
Google Scholar CrossrefForth, C.E. (2008). Masculinity in the modern west: gender, civilization and the body.
Google Scholar CrossrefBasingstoke, UK: Palgrave.
Google Scholar CrossrefForth, C.E. (2012a). Melting Moments: The Greasy Sources of Modern Perceptions of Fat.
Google Scholar CrossrefCultural History, 1, 83-107.
Google Scholar CrossrefForth, C.E. (2012b). Fat, Desire, and Disgust in the Colonial Imagination. History Workshop
Google Scholar CrossrefJournal, 73, 211-39.
Google Scholar CrossrefForth, C.E. (in press). The Qualities of Fat: Bodies, History, and Materiality. Journal of
Google Scholar CrossrefMaterial Culture.
Google Scholar CrossrefFotherington, L.S. (2012). The positive portrayal of Sparta in late-twentieth-century fiction.
Google Scholar CrossrefIn Hodkinson and Macgregor Morris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.393-428).
Google Scholar CrossrefGowers, E. (1996). The Loaded Table: Representations of Food in Roman Literature.
Google Scholar CrossrefOxford: Clarendon Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefHartley, C. (2001). Letting Ourselves Go: Making Room for the Fat Body in Feminist
Google Scholar CrossrefScholarship. In J.E. Braziel and K. LeBesco (Eds.), Bodies out of Bounds: Fatness and Transgression (pp.60-73). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefHeywood, L. (1996). Dedication to Hunger: The Anorexic Aesthetic in Modern Culture.
Google Scholar CrossrefBerkeley: University of California Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefHill, S.E. (2011). Eating to Excess: The Meaning of Gluttony and the Fat Body in the Ancient
Google Scholar CrossrefWorld. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.
Google Scholar CrossrefHippocrates (1957). Airs, Waters, Places, in Hippocrates I. W.H.S. Jones (Trans.),
Google Scholar CrossrefCambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefHoberman, J. (1984). Sport and political ideology. London: Heinemann.
Google Scholar CrossrefHodkinson, S. (2012). Sparta and the Soviet Union in U.S. Cold War foreign policy and
Google Scholar Crossrefintelligence analysis. In Hodkinson and Macgregor Morris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.343-92).
Google Scholar CrossrefHodkinson, S. and Macgregor Morris, I. (2012). Sparta in Modern Thought: Politics, History
Google Scholar Crossrefand Culture. Swansea: Classical Press of Wales.
Google Scholar CrossrefJaucourt, L. chevalier de (1765a). Obésité. In D. Diderot and J. le Rond d’Alembert (Eds.),
Google Scholar CrossrefEncyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers, Neufchâtel: chez Samuel Faulche, XI.
Google Scholar CrossrefJaucourt, L. chevalier de (1765b). Sparte ou Lacédémone. In D. Diderot and J. le Rond
Google Scholar Crossrefd’Alembert (Eds.), Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers (pp.428-32). Neufchâtel: chez Samuel Faulche, XV.
Google Scholar CrossrefJohnson, J. (1818). The influence of tropical climates on European constitutions. 2nd ed.,
Google Scholar CrossrefLondon, T. & J. Underwood.
Google Scholar CrossrefKolnai, A. (2004). On Disgust. B. Smith and C. Korsmeyer (Eds.), Chicago: Open Court.
Google Scholar CrossrefLe Camus, A. (1753). Médecine de l'esprit. Paris: Ganeau, II.
Google Scholar CrossrefLe Camus, A. (1754). Abdeker: or, the art of preserving beauty. London: A. Millar.
Google Scholar CrossrefLelarge de Lignac, J.-A. (1774). De l'homme et de la femme, considérés physiquement dans
Google Scholar Crossrefl'état du mariage. Lille: J.B. Henry, I.
Google Scholar CrossrefLevy-Navarro, E. (2008). The Culture of Obesity in Early and Late Modernity. Basingstoke,
Google Scholar CrossrefUK: Palgrave.
Google Scholar CrossrefLosemann, V. (2012). The Spartan tradition in Germany, 1870-1945. In Hodkinson and
Google Scholar CrossrefMacgregor Morris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.253-314).
Google Scholar CrossrefMason, H. (2012). Sparta and the French Englightenment. In Hodkinson and Macgregor
Google Scholar CrossrefMorris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.71-104).
Google Scholar CrossrefMiller, W.I. (1997). The Anatomy of Disgust. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefMonaghan, L.F. (2008). Men and the War on Obesity: A Sociological Study. London:
Google Scholar CrossrefRoutledge.
Google Scholar CrossrefMontanari, M. (1999). Peasants, Warriors, Priests: Images of Society and Styles of Diet. In
Google Scholar CrossrefJ.-L. Flandrin and M. Montanari (Eds.), Food: A Culinary History from Antiquity to the Present (Pp.178-85). New York: Columbia University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefNisbet, G. (2012). ‘This is cake-town!’: 300 (2006) and the death of allegory. In Hodkinson
Google Scholar Crossrefand Macgregor Morris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.429-58).
Google Scholar CrossrefNussbaum, M. (2004). Hiding from Humanity: Disgust, Shame, and the Law. Princeton:
Google Scholar CrossrefPrinceton University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefO’Connell, S. (2007). 300 movie review,
Google Scholar Crossref<<http://www.contactmusic.com/new/film.nsf/reviews/300>>. Last consulted August 28, 2012.
Google Scholar CrossrefOgilvie, J. (1859). The Imperial Dictionary, English, Technological and Scientific, Vol. I.
Google Scholar CrossrefGlasgow: Blackie and Son.
Google Scholar CrossrefOllier, F. (1933). Le mirage spartiate. Étude sur l'idéalisation de Sparte dans l'antiquité
Google Scholar Crossrefgrecque de l'origine jusqu'aux cyniques. Paris: Éditions du Boccard.
Google Scholar CrossrefOnishi, N. (2008). Japan, seeking trim waists, measures millions. New York Times, June 13.
Google Scholar CrossrefOrbach, S. (1978). Fat is a feminist issue. New York: Paddington Press,
Google Scholar CrossrefPfeffer, W. (1997). Proverbs in Medieval Occitan Literature. University Press of Florida.
Google Scholar CrossrefPlato (1980). The Laws. T.L. Pangle (Trans.), New York: Basic Books.
Google Scholar CrossrefPlutarch (1934). The Life of Lycurgus, in The Parallel Lives. Cambridge, MA: Harvard
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefPyle, N.C. and Loewy, M.I. (2009). Double Stigma: Fat Men and their Male Admirers. In
Google Scholar CrossrefE. Rothblum and S. Solovay (Eds.), The Fat Studies Reader (pp.143-150). New York: NYU Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefRoche, H. (2012). Spartanische Pimpfe: The importance of Sparta in the educational ideology
Google Scholar Crossrefof the Adolf Hitler schools. In Hodkinson and Macgregor Morris (2012), Sparta in Modern Thought (Pp.315-42).
Google Scholar CrossrefRogers, P. (2010). Fat is a Fictional Issue: The Novel and the Rise of Weight-Watching. In E.
Google Scholar CrossrefLevy-Navarro (Ed.), Historicizing Fat in Anglo-American Culture (pp.19-39). Columbus, OH: Ohio State University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefSchonfeld, W.A. (1950). Inadequate Masculine Physique: A Factor in Personality
Google Scholar CrossrefDevelopment of Adolescent Boys. Psychosomatic Medicine 12, 49-54.
Google Scholar CrossrefSeneca (1979). Ad Lucilium Epistulae Morales. R.M. Gummere (Trans.), Cambridge, MA:
Google Scholar CrossrefHarvard University Press, vol. III
Google Scholar CrossrefSheldon, W.H. (1940). The Varieties of Human Physique: An Introduction to Constitutional
Google Scholar CrossrefPsychology. New York: Harper & Brothers.
Google Scholar CrossrefSheldon, W.H. (1944). The Varieties of Temperament: A Psychology of Constitutional
Google Scholar CrossrefDifferences. New York: Harper & Brothers.
Google Scholar CrossrefSinha, M. (1995). Colonial Masculinity: The ‘Manly Englishman’ and the ‘Effeminate
Google Scholar CrossrefBengali’ in the Late Nineteenth Century. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefSmith, R.R.R. (1997). The Public Image of Licinius I: Portrait Sculpture and Imperial
Google Scholar CrossrefIdeology in the Early Fourth Century. Journal of Roman Studies, 87, 170-202.
Google Scholar CrossrefSoranus (1991). Soranus’ Gynecology. O. Temkin (Trans.), Baltimore: Johns Hopkins
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefStearns, P.N. (1997). Fat History: Bodies and Beauty in the Modern West. New York: NYU
Google Scholar CrossrefPress.
Google Scholar CrossrefStevens, D. (2007). A Movie Only a Spartan Could Love: The Battle Epic 300. Slate
Google Scholar CrossrefMagazine (8 March), http://www.slate.com/id/2161450. Last accessed 31 July 2012.
Google Scholar CrossrefStreets, H. (2004). Martial Races: The Military, Race and Masculinity in British Imperial
Google Scholar CrossrefCulture, 1857-1914. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefTétart, G. (2004). Le sang des fleurs: une anthropologie de l’abeille et du miel. Paris: Odile
Google Scholar CrossrefJacob.
Google Scholar CrossrefTheweleit, K. (1987). Male Fantasies, Volume 1: Women, Floods, Bodies, History. S.
Google Scholar CrossrefConway (Trans.), Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefTyler, J. (2007), 300 Movie review, www.cinemablend.com, March 1.
Google Scholar Crossref<<http://www.cinemablend.com/reviews/300-2149.html>>. Last consulted April 18, 2010.
Google Scholar CrossrefVarner, E.R. (2004). Mutilation and Transformation: Damnatio Memoriae and Roman
Google Scholar CrossrefImperial Portraiture. Leiden: Brill.
Google Scholar CrossrefVarro (1934). De Re Rustica. W. D. Hooper and H. B. Ash (Trans.), Cambridge, MA:
Google Scholar CrossrefHarvard University Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefVertinsky, P. (2002). Embodying Normalcy: Anthropometry and the Long Arm of
Google Scholar CrossrefWilliam H. Sheldon's Somatotyping Project. Journal of Sport History 29, 95-133.
Google Scholar CrossrefVialles, N. (1994). Animal to Edible. J.A. Underwood (Trans.), Cambridge: Cambridge
Google Scholar CrossrefUniversity Press.
Google Scholar CrossrefVigarello, G. (2010). Les métamorphoses du gras: histoire de l’obésité. Paris: Seuil.
Google Scholar CrossrefVirey, J.-J. (1815). embonpoint. In Dictionnaire des sciences médicales (pp.508-11). Paris :
Google Scholar CrossrefC.L.F. Panckoucke, XI.
Google Scholar CrossrefWeiler, I. (2002). Inverted Kalokagathia. In T. Weidemann and J. Gardner (Eds.),
Google Scholar CrossrefRepresenting the Body of the Slave, (pp.11-28), London: Frank Cass.
Google Scholar CrossrefDownloads
Published
Metrics
Almetric
Dimensions
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
All articles are published under Creative Commons copyright (CC BY). Authors hold the copyright and retain publishing rights without restrictions, but authors allow anyone to download, reuse, reprint, modify, distribute, and/or copy articles as the original source is cited.