Out of Control: The Rhetoric of Gastrointestinal Disorders

Normal 0false false falseEN-US X-NONE X-NONEMicrosoftInternetExplorer4/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}This article suggests that IBS, and its relationship to disability studies, can be better understood by examining the rhetorics surrounding gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. To understand the function of GI rhetorics, I examine three rhetorical sites: (1) communal meal settings and the rhetorical politics of food refusal; (2) historical and contemporary texts that gender gastrointestinal distress; and (3) rhetorics of cure and control in advertising for GI-related products, particularly Zelnorm and Activia. The article concludes that changing attitudes about gastrointestinal disorders is not so much about controlling our bodies, but reclaiming the rhetorics of these disorders.