Exploring the Cultural History of Continental European Freak Shows and 'Enfreakment'

Rezensionen / Stimmen

"The volume is an important contribution to disability studies in general and, it is hoped, will encourage the study of enfreakment beyond European history in a similar collected volume. This fruit of well-grounded research should receive wide attention. Exploring the Cultural History of Continental European Freak Shows and "Enfreakment" is inspirational for broadening study not only beyond the United States but also beyond Europe. It will be of interest to scholars of the many disciplines on which it draws-from anthropology to zoology-and the entire work, or portions from it, could be incorporated with ease into any university-level course. With its engaging style, alluring illustrations, and elegant insights, this enticing and experimental collection will also be of interest to any general reader interested in the human condition."-Professor M. Lynn Rose, Truman State University; H-Disability, December, 2014"The cultural history outlined in this innovative "freak-show studies" volume on Continental Europe offers new perspectives by adopting interdisciplinary approaches interweaving Disability Studies proper with cultural anthropology, philosophy, sociology, museology, popular entertainment research, and trauma studies. A substantial geographical area from Germany and France to Ukraine and Russia is covered by authors who come from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Ukraine, and Russia. The theories and methodologies applied are duly diverse, embracing, as the editors claim, "partial perspectives and situated (knowledge)formations [and] refusing to settle for a finalized, objective historical truth and rather opting for keeping the notion of histories in/on move in a relative and dynamic process" (12)."-Professor Eniko Bollobas, Chair of the Department of American Studies, Eoetvoes Lorand University; Americana, 9:1, 2013"The essays in this collection address the issue of how bodily difference was represented in the textual and visual cultures of Continental Europe from the medieval period through the late twentieth century. [...] It is heartening to see that issues of physical difference and disability are being interrogated by scholars working in a variety of disciplines and from a range of geographical locations."-Nadja Durbach, Professor and Associate Chair, Department of History, University of Utah; Disability Studies Quarterly, 34.1, 2014