Category Archives: Judaism

Don’t let The Mirror Peep At Your Body

There are restrictions on nudity even when alone. For instance, Haredim mention that in the toilet a Jew should “expose a little and cover up even more”; an oft-quoted story is told of an exemplary character from the period of … Continue reading

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Nudity Is No Trivial Matter

Nudity is no trivial matter. For most cultures, including Haredi society, it is a sensitive affair. We can see this from the centrality and gravity of the Jewish laws and customs that deal with exposure of the body in general, … Continue reading

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Notes on Haredi Physicality – The hair

It is a commonplace in anthropological literature that hair on the head and face is an effective symbolic medium for expressing identity and changes in identity, especially because it is immediately noticeable and easy to manipulate. Hair is a familiar … Continue reading

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Notes on Haredi Physicality – In The Nude

All clothing, and much more so a peculiar uniform like that worn by the Haredim, has a straightjacket effect on its wearer, as it restricts and defines his consciousness and behavior. This includes the influence of clothing on body language … Continue reading

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Prof. Gideon Aran: Body and Society – Male Body and Religious Body

In the past decade or two, writing about the human body has become a flourishing industry in the social sciences and humanities. A rich literature has accumulated on the Body and Society, including on the male body, and the religious … Continue reading

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Prof. Gideon Aran – Yeshiva Mizrachit And The Haredi Body

Yeshiva mizrachit is hegemonic. Of course, not everybody adopts it, and there are those who positively reject it. Certain groups of Jewish citizens from the pre-state yishuv, as well from today’s state, can be singled out for not practicing yeshiva … Continue reading

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Gideon Aran – Sitting Posture, Native Israeliness and Ultra-Orthodoxy

American readers of a certain age will no doubt have come across this phenomenon at the time of the ‘flower children’, and it still may be possible to find it in enclaves of 1960s sub-culture, or among New Age holdouts. … Continue reading

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