-As discussed in the seminar on Foucault, one of the first things to address with this essay title is the wording of the question itself: you probably need to try to unpack the term ‘contemporary debates about the politics of the body’. Once you have done that, we are looking for you to provide an explanation of Foucault’s account of the body, and then to appraise it in relation to the question in relation to appropriate examples (to what extent does it help us to understand contemporary debates about the politics of the body?). You will need to show evidence of having read some of Foucault’s own writing about the body, and to have engaged with some of the secondary literature on him as well. With this in mind, I’d advise you to begin by reading around. Once you have done that, and you have a good understanding of Foucault, and of debates about his theory of the body, why don’t you sign up for an office hours slot so that we can discuss your essay plan.