Description

Book Synopsis
In 1847, during the great age of the freak show, the British periodical Punch bemoaned the public's 'prevailing taste for deformity'. This work argues that far from being purely exploitative, displays of anomalous bodies served a deeper social purpose as they generated popular and scientific debates over the meanings attached to bodily difference.

Trade Review
"This is a marvelously researched and engagingly written work of history." Bulletin Of The History Of Medicine "Spectacle of Deformity is a detailed and provocative history of the Victorian freak show in Great Britain." Victorian Studies

Table of Contents
List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: Exhibiting Freaks 1. Monstrosity, Masculinity, and Medicine: Reexamining "the Elephant Man" 2. Two Bodies, Two Selves, Two Sexes: Conjoined Twins and "the Double-Bodied Hindoo Boy 3. The Missing Link and the Hairy Belle: Evolution, Imperialism, and "Primitive" Sexuality 4. Aztecs and Earthmen: Declining Civilizations and Dying Races 5. "When the Cannibal King Began to Talk": Performing Race, Class, and Ethnicity Conclusion / The Decline of the Freak Show Notes Bibliography

Spectacle of Deformity

    Product form

    A Hardback by Nadja Durbach

    £56.80

    Includes FREE delivery

    RRP £71.00 – you save £14.20 (20%)

    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Mon 14 Sep 2026.

    1 in stock

      Trusted by thousands of customers. See 2,385+ Customer Reviews

      View other formats and editions of Spectacle of Deformity by Nadja Durbach

      Book details

      Publisher University of California Press
      Published 13 October 2009
      ISBN-13 9780520257689
      978-0520257689
      ISBN-10 0520257685
      Also in:
      Entertainment Circus and circus skills Other performing arts

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      In 1847, during the great age of the freak show, the British periodical Punch bemoaned the public's 'prevailing taste for deformity'. This work argues that far from being purely exploitative, displays of anomalous bodies served a deeper social purpose as they generated popular and scientific debates over the meanings attached to bodily difference.

      Trade Review
      "This is a marvelously researched and engagingly written work of history." Bulletin Of The History Of Medicine "Spectacle of Deformity is a detailed and provocative history of the Victorian freak show in Great Britain." Victorian Studies

      Table of Contents
      List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: Exhibiting Freaks 1. Monstrosity, Masculinity, and Medicine: Reexamining "the Elephant Man" 2. Two Bodies, Two Selves, Two Sexes: Conjoined Twins and "the Double-Bodied Hindoo Boy 3. The Missing Link and the Hairy Belle: Evolution, Imperialism, and "Primitive" Sexuality 4. Aztecs and Earthmen: Declining Civilizations and Dying Races 5. "When the Cannibal King Began to Talk": Performing Race, Class, and Ethnicity Conclusion / The Decline of the Freak Show Notes Bibliography

      Recently viewed products

      © 2026 Book Curl

        • American Express
        • Apple Pay
        • Diners Club
        • Discover
        • Google Pay
        • Maestro
        • Mastercard
        • PayPal
        • Shop Pay
        • Union Pay
        • Visa

        Login

        Forgot your password?

        Don't have an account yet?
        Create account