The Wrestler's Body: Identity and Ideology in North India
By
Joseph S. Alter (Author)
Hardback
Available / dispatched within 1 - 4 weeks
Quantity
Description
"The Wrestler's Body" tells the story of a way of life organized in terms of physical self-development. While Indian wrestlers are competitive athletes, they are also moral reformers whose conception of self and society is fundamentally somatic. Using the insights of anthropology, Joseph Alter writes an ethnography of the wrestler's physique that elucidates the somatic structure of the wrestler's identity and ideology. Young men in North India may choose to join an akhara, or gymnasium, where they subject themselves to a complex program of physical and moral fitness. Alter's first-hand description of each detail of the wrestler's regimen offers a unique perspective on South Asian culture and society. Wrestlers feel that moral reform of Indian national character is essential and advocate their way of life as an ideology of national health. Everyone is called on to become a wrestler and build collective strength through self-discipline.
About the Author
Joseph S. Alter grew up in North India and was himself a youthful member of an akhara. He was educated at Woodstock School in India and at Wesleyan University and the University of California, Berkeley.
More Details
- Contributor: Joseph S. Alter
- Imprint: University of California Press
- ISBN13: 9780520076976
- Number of Pages: 332
- Packaged Weight: 726
- Format: Hardback
- Publisher: University of California Press
- Release Date: 1992-07-01
- Binding: Hardback
- Biography: Joseph S. Alter grew up in North India and was himself a youthful member of an akhara. He was educated at Woodstock School in India and at Wesleyan University and the University of California, Berkeley.
Delivery Options
Home Delivery
Store Delivery
Free Returns
We hope you are delighted with everything you buy from us. However, if you are not, we will refund or replace your order up to 30 days after purchase. Terms and exclusions apply; find out more from our Returns and Refunds Policy.