Sarah Chaney: Psyche on the Skin: A History of Self-Harm
Reaktion Books, 2017. . Binding: Hardcover. Book Condition: Fine Condition. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 320 pages.
Firmly bound, clean unmarked pages; sellotape repair to top front corner of jacket, creasing to rear top edge.
Psyche on the Skin charts the secret history of self-harm. The book describes its many forms, from sexual self-mutilation and hysterical malingering in the late Victorian period, to self-castrating religious sects, to self-mutilation and self-destruction in art, music and popular culture. Sarah Chaney's refreshing historical approach refutes the notion that self-harm has any universal meaning - that it necessarily says something specific about an individual or group, or that it can ever be understood outside the historical and cultural context of a particular era.
Drawing on her personal experiences, written in an engaging style and containing many powerful images, Psyche on the Skin challenges the misconceptions and controversies surrounding self-harm.The book is crucial reading for professionals in the field as well as all those affected by this act.