Fat Studies – Doing, Becoming and Being Fat

• Applicant: Dr. Friedrich Schorb
• Subject Area: Sociological Theory ; Public Health, Healthcare Research, Social and Occupational Medicine
• Term: from 2018 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 415509786

Fat Studies is an academic inquiry of the societal dealing with body fat that avoids being normative and/or discriminating. Rather, Fat Studies is researching the process of 'doing, becoming and being fat'. Following this approach, Fat Studies asks how fat bodies are socially (re)produced, how body fat is socially perceived, and how being fat is experienced by the one who is affected. The purpose of our network is to increase the visibility of Fat Studies, and to introduce Fat Studies as an established field of scholarly research in German academia. In order to do so, we will review research questions and approaches already established in Fat Studies in English speaking countries, and seek the transnational connections to German society and culture. Our network follows an interdisciplinary approach as our members originate from different disciplines with unique methods and propositions. In order to unleash the innovative potential of an interdisciplinary network, our program will focus on five workshops that all approach important Fat Studies perspectives. By inviting established scholars, artists and activists to these workshops, we hope for important suggestions as well as a fruitful exchange between theory and practice.As a result of our interdisciplinary network we aim to publish an anthology. Moreover, we plan to host an international Fat Studies conference.

• DFG Programme: Scientific Networks