The Limits and Possibilities of the Face
Tobias Winright, PhD, Saint Louis University
According to Stephen Pattison, "We live in an age of the face" (Saving Face: Enfacement, Shame, Theology, 2013, p. 11). However, although faces are now ubiquitous throughout the media, for example, and while face, identity, and well-being seem to be bound together, a review of the interdisciplinary literature reveals that there are limits to understanding and defining face. Recognizing these limits seems important given how many persons suffer from facial disfigurement or damage--and feel like they have lost face, so to speak. At the same time, this paper will explore ways that Christian theological tradition on the vision of God, God's face, human faces, and religious icons might serve as possibilities for an interface on thinking about human embodiment, including how one's body is related to one's self or identity and what is a "normal" human face/body. It will reflect on these limits and possibilities of the face and their implications for contemporary medicine, especially in connection with cosmetic surgery and face transplants.
According to Stephen Pattison, "We live in an age of the face" (Saving Face: Enfacement, Shame, Theology, 2013, p. 11). However, although faces are now ubiquitous throughout the media, for example, and while face, identity, and well-being seem to be bound together, a review of the interdisciplinary literature reveals that there are limits to understanding and defining face. Recognizing these limits seems important given how many persons suffer from facial disfigurement or damage--and feel like they have lost face, so to speak. At the same time, this paper will explore ways that Christian theological tradition on the vision of God, God's face, human faces, and religious icons might serve as possibilities for an interface on thinking about human embodiment, including how one's body is related to one's self or identity and what is a "normal" human face/body. It will reflect on these limits and possibilities of the face and their implications for contemporary medicine, especially in connection with cosmetic surgery and face transplants.