"...the modern contours of power, and the structures of work discipline,
are imprinted upon the body. In a world of rampant careerism,
self-absorption is a rule of thumb. If the division of labor sets each
worker in competition with every other, here that fragmentation is
aestheticized into the narcissism of mind and body.
"The migration of women into the social structure of industrial
discipline is similarly aestheticized in a n ad for Jack LaLanne Fitness
Centers. A black and white close-up of a young women wrestling with a
fitness "machine" is complemented by the eroticized grimace on her face.
Once again, the chiaroscuro technique technique accentuates the
straining muscles of her arms. The high-contrast, black and white motif
may also suggest "night and day" metamorphesis that will occur when one
commits to this particular brand of physical discipline.
"In large white letters, superimposed across the shadowy bottom of the
photograph, are the words "Be taut by experts". With a clever play of
words the goal of education moves from the mind to the body. Muscle
power is offered as an equivalent substitute for brain power. No
problem. IN the search for the perfect regulated self, it is implicit
that others will do the thinking. This woman like Soloflex Man, is the
product of pure engineering, of technical expertise:
'We were building bodies back when you were building blocks. We know how
to perfectly balance your workout between swimming, jogging, aerobics,
and weight training on hundreds of the most advanced machines available.
Sure it may hurt a little. But remember. **You only hurt the one you
love.**'
These advertisements, like Raymond H's regular visits to the Nautilus
room, are part of the middle class bodily rhetoric of the 1980's.
Together they mark a culture in which self-absorbed careerism,
conspicuous consumption and a conception of **self** as an object of
competitive display have fused to become the preponderant symbols of
achievement. The regulated body is the nexus where a cynical ethos of
social Darwinism and the eroticism of raw power meet. Yet despite the
currency of this bodily ideal, the roots of the regulated body have been
deeply implanted in the terrain of Western culture since the
Enlightenment..." p173-4 All Consuming Images, Stuart Ewen 2nd ed. 1992.
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