Bodies 1850-1918

This interdisciplinary module will introduce you to the ways in which the Victorians and Edwardians thought about the body. 1850-1918 was a period when scientific, technological and medical developments gave unprecedented access to the body, but also provided the means to categorise ‘failed’ bodies or to maim them through warfare. Visual representations, including early film, will also be used to illuminate textual material.

Topics covered

• The anaesthetised body
• Criminal bodies
• Athletic bodies
• X-rayed bodies
• Bodies at war