About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherUniversity of British Columbia Press

ISBN-100774867205

ISBN-139780774867207

eBay Product ID (ePID)10057252275

Product Key Features

Number of Pages268 Pages

Publication NameWhat Nudism Exposes : an Unconventional History of Postwar Canada

LanguageEnglish

Publication Year2022

SubjectSociology / General, Gender Studies, Modern / 20th Century, Canada / Post-Confederation (1867-)

TypeTextbook

AuthorMary-Ann Shantz

Subject AreaSocial Science, History

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.9 in

Item Weight19 Oz

Item Length9.2 in

Item Width6.2 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceScholarly & Professional

Reviews What Nudism Exposes deftly explores the fascinating but little-known history of nudism, woven into the larger social story of postwar Canada. No other book focuses on issues of gender relations and sexuality in this context., By studying nudism, Mary-Ann Shantz offers a novel lens on significant concerns about Canadian society after World War II.

Table Of ContentIntroduction Part 1: Nudism Comes to Canada 1 Building a Movement 2 Constructing Community at the Club 3 Regulating Sexuality 4 Navigating Gender Norms 5 Raising Young Nudists Part 2: Nudism on Display 6 Photographs in Sunbathing for Health Magazine, 1947-59 7 The Pageant Tradition and Miss Nude World Part 3: Nudism, the Natural Environment, and the Regulation of Space 8 Cultivating Nature and Protecting Privacy at the Club 9 Defending Nature and Public Nudity at Wreck Beach, 1969-79 Conclusion Notes; Bibliography; Index

SynopsisWhat Nudism Exposes offers an original perspective on postwar Canada by situating the nudist movement within the broader social and cultural context and considering how nudist clubs navigated changing times. As the nudist movement took root in Canada after the Second World War, its members advanced the idea that going nude and looking at the bodies of others satisfied natural curiosity, loosened the hold of social taboos, and encouraged mental health. By the 1970s, nudists increasingly emphasized the pleasurable aspects of their practice. Mary-Ann Shantz contends that throughout the postwar decades, nudists sought social approval as they engaged with contemporary concerns about childrearing, sexuality, public nudity, and the natural environment. This perceptive, eminently readable book explains the perspectives of the movement while questioning its assumptions. What nudism ultimately exposes is how the body figures at the intersection of nature and culture, the individual and the social, the private and the public., A new history of Canada through the story of the nudist movement. What Nudism Exposes offers an original perspective on postwar Canada by situating the nudist movement within the broader social and cultural context and considering how nudist clubs navigated changing times. As the nudist movement took root in Canada after the Second World War, its adherents advanced the idea that going nude and looking at the bodies of others satisfied natural curiosity, loosened the hold of social taboos, and encouraged mental health. By the 1970s, nudists switched their focus to promoting the pleasurable aspects of their practice. Mary-Ann Shantz contends that throughout the postwar decades, nudists sought social approval as they engaged with contemporary concerns about childrearing, pornography, and public nudity. This book explains the perspectives of the movement while questioning its assumptions, arguing that what nudism ultimately exposes is how the body figures at the intersection of nature and culture, the individual and the social, the private and the public., What Nudism Exposes offers a convincing new perspective on postwar Canada by revealing how nudist clubs navigated the social and cultural changes of the 1950s, '60s, and '70s.