1st Edition
The Visualised Foetus A Cultural and Political Analysis of Ultrasound Imagery
By Julie Roberts
Copyright 2012
176 Pages
by
Routledge
176 Pages
by
Routledge
176 Pages
by
Routledge
Also available as eBook on:
The latest three- and four dimensional images produced by modern ultrasound technology offer strikingly realistic representations of the foetus - representations that have further transformed experiences of pregnancy, the public understanding of foetal existence and the rhetoric of the abortion debate. Presenting a timely feminist engagement with this new technology, The Visualised Foetus explores... Read more
Contents: Introduction; Ultrasound and its application to obstetrics: clinical and social dilemmas; Feminism and the celebrity foetus; The ultimate image in the abortion debate?; Bonding through spectatorship; Bonding scans as ’biotourism’?; The public family foetus online; Concluding thoughts; Bibliography; Index.
Biography
Julie Roberts is Research Fellow in Maternity Care at the University of Nottingham, UK.
’A fascinating look at the new baby’s first picture - 3D/4D ultrasound foetal images. Julie Roberts’ analysis is perceptive and fresh, skillfully drawing from feminist, visual and technology studies to generate insightful questions and enrich our thinking about sonograms, reproductive politics, and the desire to see and know the foetus.’ Lisa M. Mitchell, University of Victoria, Canada ’Underpinned by a thorough examination of the now extensive feminist and sociological literatures on ultrasound practices, Roberts compellingly argues that we need to both take the pleasures of ultrasound seriously and to think carefully about the potentially disturbing implications of contemporary foetal images for the politics of abortion, popular understandings of maternal "bonding'" and the production of family belonging. Succinctly capturing a significant historical moment in reproductive culture, this book will become a valuable source for feminist teaching and research on pregnancy, bodies and imaging for a long time to come.’ Celia Roberts, Lancaster University, UK
