Tattoos - Philosophy for Everyone

Covering philosophical issues ranging from tattooed religious symbols to a feminist aesthetics of tattoo, Tattoos and Philosophy offers an enthusiastic analysis of inking that will lead readers to consider the nature of the tattooing arts in a new and profound way.

• Contains chapters written by philosophers (most all with tattoos themselves), tattoo artists, and tattoo enthusiasts that touch upon many areas in Western and Eastern philosophy
• Enlightens people to the nature of tattoos and the tattooing arts, leading readers to think deeply about tattoos in new ways
• Offers thoughtful and humorous insights that make philosophical ideas accessible to the non-philosopher

Körperkunst oder einfach nur unästhetisch: Tattoos geben immer wieder Anlass zu philosophischen Diskussionen. Dieses Sachbuch bietet aufschlussreiche Einblicke in die Geschichte der Tätowierung und zeigt, welche Schlüsse Philosophen ziehen. I Ink, Therefore I Foreword x
Rocky Rakovic

I Am, Therefore I Ink: An Introduction to Tattoos – Philosophy for Everyone: I Ink, Therefore I Am xiv
Robert Arp

Acknowledgments xxvii

SHEET I THE HISTORY AND NATURE OF TATTOOS 1

1 Tattoos and the Tattooing Arts in Perspective: An Overview and Some Preliminary Observations 3
Charles Taliaferro and Mark Odden

2 How to Read a Tattoo, and Other Perilous Quests 14
Juniper Ellis

SHEET II TATTOOS AND ART 27

3 Are Tattoos Art? 29
Nicolas Michaud

4 Fleshy Canvas: The Aesthetics of Tattoos from Feminist and Hermeneutical Perspectives 38
Kimberly Baltzer-Jaray and Tanya Rodriguez

SHEET III THE TATTOOED WOMAN 51

5 Female Tattoos and Graffiti 53
Thorsten Botz-Bornstein

6 Painted Fetters: Tattooing as Feminist Liberation 65
Nancy Kang

SHEET IV PERSONAL IDENTITY 81

7 Tattoo You: Personal Identity in Ink 83
Kyle Fruh and Emily Thomas

8 Illusions of Permanence: Tattoos and the Temporary Self 96
Rachel C. Falkenstern

9 My Tattoo May Be Permanent, But My Memory of It Isn't 109
Clancy Smith

SHEET V EXPRESSIONS OF FREEDOM 121

10 Tattoos are Forever: Bodily Freedom and the (Im)possibility of Change 123
Felipe Carvalho

11 Bearing the Marks: How Tattoos Reveal Our Embodied Freedom 135
Jonathan Heaps

SHEET VI EXPERIENCES AND STORIES SURROUNDING TATTOOS 149

12 Never Merely 'There': Tattooing as a Practice of Writing and a Telling of Stories 151
Wendy Lynne Lee

13 Something Terribly Flawed: Philosophy and ‘The Illustrated Man' 165
Kevin S. Decker

SHEET VII ETHICAL CONCERNS 179

14 The Vice of the Tough Tattoo 181
Jennifer Baker

15 To Ink, or Not To Ink: Tattoos and Bioethics 193
Daniel Miori

16 Writing on the Body: The Modern Morality of the Tattoo 206
Simon Woods

SHEET VIII EASTERN AND RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVES 219

17 Is a Tattoo a Sign of Impiety? 221
Adam Barkman

18 Confessions of a Tattooed Buddhist Philosopher 230
Joseph J. Lynch

19 An Atheist and a Theist Discuss a Cross Tattoo and God's Existence 242
Robert Arp

Notes on Contributors 261

Review from http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/books/features/the-philosophy-of-tattoos-1-2340604"
The Scotman 8 June 2012

Robert Arp is a philosopher and ontologist who has taught at numerous colleges and universities. He is the author of Scenario Visualization: An Evolutionary Account of Creative Problem Solving (2008) and a co-author of Critical Thinking: An Introduction to Reasoning Well (2011), What’s Good on TV: Understanding Ethics through Television (Wiley-Blackwell, 2011), and Philosophy DeMYSTiFieD (2011); in addition, he is editor of South Park and Philosophy: You Know, I Learned Something Today (Wiley-Blackwell, 2006).

Series Editor

Fritz Allhoff is an associate professor in the philosophy department at Western Michigan University, as well as a senior research fellow at the Australian National University’s Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics. In addition to editing the Philosophy for Everyone series, he is also the volume editor or co-editor for several titles, including Wine and Philosophy (Wiley-Blackwell, 2007), Whiskey and Philosophy (with Marcus P. Adams, Wiley, 2009), and Food and Philosophy (with Dave Monroe, Wiley-Blackwell, 2007). His academic research interests engage various facets of applied ethics, ethical theory, and the history and philosophy of science.

Body art or eyesore, a celebration of individuality, or at very least a conversation piece, tattoos provide fertile ground for philosophical discussion, raising intriguing questions about subjects ranging from aesthetics to feminism and from semiotics to the philosophy of the person. The abundance of tattooed religious symbols also raises questions surrounding the belief in and worship of God, and even the stigma associated with tattoos can initiate discussion on moral and political philosophy. Providing a broad arena for philosophical dialogue, essays include:

• Tattoos as an expression of freedom
• Confessions of a tattooed Buddhist philosopher
• Women and tattoos
• Tattoos and personal identity

Papers, animatedly inked by philosophers (most with tattoos), tattoo artists, and tattoo enthusiasts, offer enlightening insights into the nature of tattoos and the tattooing arts and the rich philosophical analysis that can be drawn from them. It's about time tattoos got a philosophical treatment like this!

Michelle "Bombshell" McGee