‘You’re not big, you’re just in Asia’: expatriate embodiment and emotional experiences of size in Singapore
Authors
Lloyd, JennyAffiliation
University of BedfordshireIssue Date
2017-10-03
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This article brings together work on privileged migration with critical geographical work on body size. In uniting these areas together I focus on the role of embodiment within expatriate experiences of migration to Singapore. I argue that despite a developing body of critical work on migration, this work has failed to explore embodied experiences of size. To counter this gap, this research demonstrates the importance of recognising how sized narratives and experiences are shaped through gendered migration and the need to explore the multiplicity of experiences of women in different places of the city. Drawing upon empirical research with expatriate women in Singapore I advance work within critical geographies of body size by presenting original work that challenges dominant and medicalised understandings of fatness as inherently bad. Furthermore, I contribute to the growing area of work that places emphasis on the subjective nature of size through recognition of work on migration. In this article I explore how migration was embodied and discussed through size, firstly by looking at how women discussed losing their sense of identity. Secondly, the temporal and spatial embeddedness of size. Finally, how women rejected and resisted dominant discourses through humour and indifference.Citation
Lloyd J (2017) '‘You’re not big, you’re just in Asia’: expatriate embodiment and emotional experiences of size in Singapore', Social and Cultural Geography, 20 (6), pp.806-825.Publisher
Taylor & FrancisJournal
Social and Cultural GeographyAdditional Links
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14649365.2017.1384047Type
ArticleLanguage
enISSN
1464-9365Sponsors
ESRC ES/I903615/1ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1080/14649365.2017.1384047
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