Susan Bordo and the Pursuit of Happyness

Susan Bordo is a contemporary feminist philosopher who focuses on cultural study that links modern consumer culture to the idea of genderized bodies. Her particular research focus is describing the manner in which popular culture (especially film) impacts the complex nature of how women and men view themselves, their bodies, and/or their place in the world. Further, from an academic standpoint, she sees the power of cultural phenomena as a way that forms a societal hierarchy and template for ways of behavior, interpretation, indeed of being that become preferable to reality for many people (Bordo).

Chapter 3 of her book Twilight Zones, is an essay entitled "Braveheart, Baby and the Contemporary Body." In this essay, Bordo argues that in contemporary American culture, all that is required is to "stop whining, lace up your sneakers, and forge ahead, blasting your way through social limitations…....
[ View Full Essay]