About the Book
'Illuminating, thoughtful and scholarly' FINANCIAL TIMES
'Does a fascinating job of exploring the history of women's bodies' GREG JENNER
'Mind-blowing, fascinating stuff' BBC WOMAN'S HOUR
'Authoritative, rich and wide-ranging, this is an immensely impressive work of scholarship' GUARDIAN
Throughout history, religious scholars, medical men and - occasionally - women themselves, have moulded thought on what 'makes' a woman. She has been called the weaker sex, the fairer sex, the purer sex, among many other monikers. Often, she has been defined simply as 'Not A Man'.
Today, we are more aware than ever of the complex relationship between our bodies and our identities. But contrary to what some may believe, what makes a woman is a question that has always been open-ended.
Immaculate Forms examines all the ways in which medicine and religion have played a gatekeeping role over women's organs. It explores how the womb was seen as both the most miraculous organ in the body and as a sewer; uncovers breasts' legacies as maternal or sexual organs - or both; probes the mystery of the disappearing hymen, and asks, did the clitoris need to be discovered at all?
About the Author :
Helen King is a historian of medicine and the body, and has published on aspects of gynaecology and obstetrics from classical Greece to the nineteenth century for over forty years. She is professor emerita of classical studies at The Open University and has held visiting posts at the universities of Vienna, Texas, Notre Dame and British Columbia. She is vice-chair of Together for the Church of England, which campaigns on a range of issues including against discrimination on the grounds of gender or sexuality.
Review :
Lively and cheeky in tone, her book leaves you with the impression that, no matter what you believe to be obvious and natural about the female body, somebody in power once believed the exact opposite
With erudition and cool wit, Helen King anatomises three millennia of Western commentary from doctors, teachers and theologians about the female body
A richly nuanced and absorbing exploration of women's unique anatomy. Across these four anatomical histories King provides an illuminating and outstandingly well-researched account of how women's bodies have been interpreted and mythologized for as long as we can remember
This is an immensely impressive work of scholarship, the result of a lifetime of thought and research on the subject and its implications for women today. Authoritative and wide-ranging, it is a remarkably rich scientific and cultural survey
An impressively widely read study, lightened along the way with illuminating trivia and King's gentle wit
Looking for a new history book? I highly recommend Professor Helen King's IMMACULATE FORMS which does a fascinating job of exploring the history of women's bodies, including some eye-opening history of the clitoris
Illuminating and scholarly ... [showing] again and again how men have charted women's bodies, examined and dissected those bodies, condemned those bodies ... King's thoughtful tome addresses how women - historically perceived as mysteries to themselves and those who would seem to know them - have been defined, and how their bodies by their very existence resist those definitions
Read it and be enlightened as well as entertained
Dr King expertly weaves science, history, and culture to illuminate history and educate about the most misunderstood parts of our bodies...Impeccably researched, thoroughly enjoyable, and filled with moments of surprise, this book will astound
Chock-full of wonderful, strange and amazing stories, King's book is a vivid history of how women's bodies have been understood - and misunderstood - over the centuries
Recreates centuries of fractious male discussion of women's bodies
Delightful, timely and critical. If cognitive science has taught us anything, it's that our imagination of the future is built from our memories of the past. Helen King is here to give us some better material to build with. The history of women's bodies isn't nearly what you think it is, nor the history of "womanhood" itself
Fascinating and striking
Thorough, thoughtful and thought provoking
From the comical to the bizarre and downright dangerous, IMMACULATE FORMS looks at how women's bodies have been shaped and understood by scientific theories and religious beliefs throughout history - and often, by men. The mind blowing book covers a vast range of time, going right back to ancient Greece and coming up to the present day ... it's fascinating stuff
An impressive ... and detailed historical account of the way in which parts of women's bodies have been viewed, interpreted, and treated - by society, medicine, and the Church - and mainly by men. [Reaching] back into classical times and around the globe to other than Western civilisations, King has provided a great service in telling so many histories of the breasts, clitoris, hymen, and womb ... this book made me wince, squirm, smile and gasp in surprise and horror - it is not for the fainthearted.
With unrivaled expertise and a wealth of classical and contemporary detail, King weaves historical knowledge of medicine, anatomy, literature, art and religion into a narrative that surprises, informs, excites and frequently amuses
Fascinating and interesting
King is meticulous and prolific. She has written with equal erudition and care about the ancient, medieval and early modern periods. She brings this range and expertise to Immaculate Forms - plus more than a little humour. A masterful achievement born from an impressive and influential career
