The Philosophy of Tattoos

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

'History, it seems, is seldom written by the tattooed.'

In this impressively broad yet personal account, John Miller 'a conventionally dressed middle-aged academic with a full bodysuit' explores tattooing as a unique expression of individual, cultural and national identity.

As the inherent shock factor of tattooing in the west decreases, tattoos are becoming more extensive, public and challenging in response, prompting an upsurge in 'extreme' tattooing. In an age of aesthetic obsession, the tattoo once the ultimate symbol of deviance is now as commodifiable as anything else.

Resisting this apparent loss of the 'magic' of tattooing, The Philosophy of Tattoos returns to its origins in cultural locations as disparate as Polynesia, the Amazon and the Arctic to interrogate the innate human desire to mark the skin. It asks what the history of tattooing might tell us about that fundamental question: what does it mean to be human?

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Hardback
ISBN13: 9780712353083
Published: March 2021

Number of pages: 112
Width: 130 mm
Height: 200 mm
Depth: not specified

Publisher: British Library Publishing