Kate Manne

Thank you to #NetGalley and Crown for providing an ARC of Kate Manne’s new book, #Unshrinking.

There are many books, websites, and social media accounts where you can learn about the research on weight gain and loss, dieting, and weight stigma. What Kate Manne brings to this material is the lens of a philosopher; she organizes this information into a philosophical, moral argument with carefully cited evidence to persuade readers that it is WRONG to discriminate against fat people. She also argues against body positivity and even body neutrality, promoting body reflexivity instead. In other words, we need not love our bodies, nor will our happiness and authenticity be found in simply accepting our bodies. We must internalize our bodies as our own, for ourselves, not for the admiration or satisfaction or use of others.

Manne integrates memoir of her own embodied experience throughout the argument, which probably makes the book more accessible for many readers. I personally did not think it works and would prefer fewer personal stories of hemming and hawing over her ‘small fat’ status. It arguably undermines her conclusion: if our bodies are for ourselves, writers do not need put their own embodiment and humanity under the microscope to prove a point. How does that get us closer to fat liberation?

These shortcomings won’t prevent me from recommending the book. I’m sure it will benefit many readers.… (altro)