06 August 2010

Bad bodies, wok and woe

For insights about commodification and cultures see HIV In China: Understanding the Social Aspects of the Epidemic (UNSW Press, 2010) edited by Jing Jun & Heather Worth, Body Shopping: Converting Body Parts to Profit (Oneworld, 2009) by Donna Dickenson and Sex, Power & Consent: Youth Culture and the Unwritten Rules (Cambridge University Press, 2010) by Anastasia Powell.

Dickenson discusses issues such as stem cell research, biopatenting, the genetic comments and 'face shopping' (the latter being something explored in my recent paper 'The Face of Anxiety in the Age of Biometrics'). Powell considers notion of consent and exploitation, including Australian law regarding sexting.

Jun & Worth include Su Chunyun's 'Red Oil: Blood and the role of a machine in the HIV Outbreak in Central China' (101-116) highlighting the inadequately regulated plasma trade, and Zhang Yuping's 'Fears of Identity Exposure Among Gay Men Living With HIV' (119-137).