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Klappentext A sociological study of public restrooms So much happens in the public toilet that we never talk about. Finding the right door, waiting in line, and using the facilities are often undertaken with trepidation. Don't touch anything. Try not to smell. Avoid eye contact. And for men, don't look down or let your eyes stray. Even washing one's hands are tied to anxieties of disgust and humiliation. And yet other things also happen in these spaces: babies are changed, conversations are had, make-up is applied, and notes are scrawled for posterity. Beyond these private issues, there are also real public concerns: problems of public access, ecological waste, and-in many parts of the world-sanitation crises. At public events, why are women constantly waiting in long lines but not men? Where do the homeless go when cities decide to close public sites? Should bathrooms become standardized to accommodate the disabled? Is it possible to create a unisex bathroom for transgendered people? In Toilet , noted sociologist Harvey Molotch and Laura Norén bring together twelve essays by urbanists, historians and cultural analysts (among others) to shed light on the public restroom. These noted scholars offer an assessment of our historical and contemporary practices, showing us the intricate mechanisms through which even the physical design of restrooms-the configurations of stalls, the number of urinals, the placement of sinks, and the continuing segregation of women's and men's bathrooms-reflect and sustain our cultural attitudes towards gender, class, and disability. Based on a broad range of conceptual, political, and down-to-earth viewpoints, the original essays in this volume show how the bathroom-as a practical matter-reveals competing visions of pollution, danger and distinction. Although what happens in the toilet usually stays in the toilet, this brilliant, revelatory, and often funny book aims to bring it all out into the open, proving that profound and meaningful history can be made even in the can. Contributors: Ruth Barcan, Irus Braverman, Mary Ann Case, Olga Gershenson, Clara Greed, Zena Kamash,Terry Kogan, Harvey Molotch, Laura Norén, Barbara Penner, Brian Reynolds, and David Serlin. Zusammenfassung Although what happens in the toilet usually stays in the toilet! this brilliant! revelatory! and often funny book aims to bring it all out into the open! proving that profound and meaningful history can be made even in the can Inhaltsverzeichnis Contents; Acknowledgments viii; 1. Introduction: Learning from the Loo 1; Harvey Molotch; Rest Stop: Russell Sage Foundation 28; Part I: Living in the Loo 29; 2. Dirty Spaces: Separation! Concealment and Shame in the Public Toilet 30; Ruth Barcan; Rest Stop: Erotics at Harvard 57; 3. Which Way to Look? Exploring Latrines in the Roman World 61; Zena Kamash; Rest Stop: Judgmental Urinals 84; 4. Potty Training: Non-Human Inspection in Public Washrooms 85; Irus Braverman; Rest Stop: Times Square Control 117; Part II: Who Gets to Go 119; 5. Only Dogs Are Free to Pee: New York Cabbies' Search for Civility 120; Laura Noren; Rest Stop: Trucker Bomb 148; 6. Creating a Non-Sexist Restroom 149; Clara Greed; Rest Stop: A Woman's Restroom Reflection 175; 7. Sex-Separation: The Cure-All for Victorian Social Anxiety 178; Terry Kogan; Rest Stop: Menstrual Dilemma 215; 8. Pissing without Pity: Disability! Gender and the Public Toilet 216; David Serlin; Rest Stop: Flirting with the Boundary 242; Part III: Building in the Future 243; 9. The Restroom Revolution: The Unisex Toilets and Campus Politics 244; Olga Gershenson; Rest Stop: Thai Students Get Transsexual Toilet 268; 10. Why Not Abolish Laws of Urinary Segregation? 270; Mary Ann Case; Rest Stop: Infinite Corridor! Now Shorter for Women 291; 11. No More White Wash: Taking Toilets Seriously 292; Barbara Penner; Rest Stop: Toilet Bloom @ Bryant Park 323; 1...
