I Move Like You . . . But Different: Biopolitics and Embodied Methodologies. (October 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Francombe-Webb, Jessica; Rich, Emma; De Pian, Laura
• Other Names: Newman Joshua I. guest-editor.; Giardina Michael D. guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Cultural studies, critical methodologies. Volume 14:Number 5(2014:Oct.)
• Page Start: 471
• Page End: 482
• Publication Date: 2014-10
• Subjects: biopolitics -- border crossing -- embodiment -- gender -- obesity; Culture -- Research -- Periodicals; Popular culture -- Research -- Periodicals; 306.05
• DOI: 10.1177/1532708614541891
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1532-7086

Abstract

Our aim in this article is to throw light on the complexity of the presence of the researcher's body in the context of conducting research on and within biopolitical governance. To do so, we present author body-narratives derived from two separatestudies, both of which explore biopolitics and draw on an embodied methodology. These narratives point toward the corporeal contradictions of being located within a culture of reading and critiquing bodies while realizing the presence of our own physicality. We argue that methodological reflection on the connections between bodies within the research field ought to rest high among the list of things shaping the future of work related to biopolitics or we risk the effacement of the body. We articulate this in two key ways. First, we examine the emplacement of the fleshy bodies of researchers and the individuals we encounter. We offer reflections on the complexities of the emplacement of our researcher bodies in time, space, and place, and advance a politics of reflexivity that sheds light on how we experience, make claims, and speak about embodiment and physical culture. Second, as scholars who seek to disrupt biopolitical forces and attempt to transcend political and disciplinary boundaries, we consider the presence of the body in a process of border crossing. Rather than simply considering border crossing as an exchange of ideas, knowledge, and practices; we explore the ways in which the presence of our sometimes "normative" bodies can seemingly complicate and contradict our political agenda.