AIDS and the Body Politic

Catherine Waldby's informative study draws on feminist theory, cultural studies, the philosophy of science and gay and lesbian studies to problematise the factual scientific discourse about AIDS and interpret it as a political discourse. Waldby argues that much AIDS discourse relies on an implicit and unconscious equation between sexual health and heterosexual masculinity. In this equation between women, bisexual and gay men are the targets of preventative programmes, while heterosexual men tend to remain unaddressed by such programmes. 1 INTRODUCTION: TOTAL WAR 2 THE BIOMEDICAL IMAGINATION AND THE ANATOMICAL BODY: AIDS AND THE NATURE/ CULTURE DISTINCTION 3 THE PRIMAL SCENE OF IMMUNOLOGY 4 EPIDEMIOLOGY AND THE BODY POLITIC 5 TECHNOLOGIES OF THE BODY POLITIC: THE HIV ANTIBODY TEST 6 CONCLUSION: SEXUAL IDENTITY AND CONTAMINATION