University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore

Includes bibliographical references (pages 169-193) and index.

Introduction: materializing fat / Christopher E. Forth-- 1. The qualities of Palestinian olive oil / Anne Meneley -- 2. In tastes, lost and found: remembering the real flavor of fat pork / Brad Weiss -- 3. Thinking through fat: the materiality of ancient and modern stereotypes / Christopher E. Forth -- 4. Joseph Beuys: shaman of fat / Alison Leitch -- 5. Engrossing encounters: materialities and metaphors of fat in the lived experiences of individuals with anorexia / Anna Lavis -- 6. Fat is the future: bioprospecting, fat stem cells, and emergent breasted materialities / Nadine Ehlers -- 7. Bound bodies: navigating the margins of fat bodies and clothes / Trudie Cain, Kerry Chamberlain and Ann Dupuis -- 8. Fatsploitation: disgust and performance of weight-loss / Jennifer-Scott Mobley.

""Fat". In contemporary society the word never fails to elicit powerful emotions, especially as it relates to bodily health and appearance. But fat is a noun as well as an adjective and has a cultural life outside of its relationship with the human body. By focusing on the complex physical and experiential dimensions of this problematic substance, Fat: Culture and Materiality breaks new ground in the study of the relationship between culture and the material world. With contributions from well-respected international scholars, this innovative and interdisciplinary collection will appeal to a wide range of readers interested in fat and its relationship to culture, materiality and lived experience. The volume addresses the role of fats in a variety of cultural settings. Topics include the politics of Palestinian olive oil; the allure of pig fat in heritage pork; the material sources of fat stereotypes in classical and biblical texts; the use of harvested fat in aesthetic surgery; and the status of fat in the self-narratives of anorexics"--