A Brief History of Nakedness

A Brief History of Nakedness traces humanity’s preoccupation with nudity in three distinct areas of human endeavour: religion, politics and popular culture. Rather than studying the history of the nude in art or photography, or detailing the ways in which the naked body has been denigrated or denied, this book explores new territory: revealing the ways in which religious teachers, politicians, protesters and cultural icons have used nudity to enlighten or empower themselves, or simply to entertain us. From the naked sages of India and St. Francis of Assisi to modern-day witches and Christian nudists, and from Lady Godiva to Lady Gaga, via The Full Monty and Calendar Girls, A Brief History of Nakedness surveys the touching, sometimes tragic and often bizarre story of our relationship to our naked bodies.