Embodied Differences

<p>This book analyzes the ways in which literary works and cultural discourses employ the construct of the Jew's body in relation to the material world in order either to establish and reinforce or to subvert and challenge dominant cultural norms and stereotypes. It examines the use of physical characteristics embodied practices tacit knowledge and senses to define the body taxonomically as normative different abject or mimetically desired. Starting from the works of Gogol and Dostoevsky through to contemporary Russian-Jewish women's writing broadening the scope to examining the role of objects museum displays and the politics of heritage food the book argues that materiality can embody fictional constructions that should be approached on a culture-specific basis.</p>