Consuming Bodies: Ticks, Pigs, and Gothic Capitalism
Abstract
A tick-borne illness has spread throughout the eastern United States, causing victims to develop a spontaneous allergic reaction to eating red meat. This condition’s etiology intersects with notable recent cases of porcine xenotransplantation: the insertion of organs from genetically altered pigs into human hosts. The antagonist in these scenarios is the sugar alpha-gal, which is naturally present in most mammals although not humans. This article draws from Bruno Latour’s depiction of modernity as an engine that produces contradictory hybrids to examine the capitalist ethic impelling cultural engagements with alpha-gal, in which the bodies of pigs and humans are cyclically conflated and differentiated as medical and edible commodities—both forms of sustenance. The consumption of these resources has a Gothic cast, which provides insight into their strange appeal, affect, and implications. This kind of quotidian Gothic invisibly pervades contemporary life, becoming palpable only through novelty, as transient examples emerge and dissipate while eliciting little sustained consternation.
- Journal
- Poroi
- Published
- 2024-12-11
- DOI
- 10.17077/2151-2957.33742
- CompPile
- Open Access
- OA PDF Gold
- Topics
-
- Export
- BibTeX RIS
Citation context
Cited by in this index (0)
No articles in this index cite this work.
References (0)
No references on file for this article.
Related articles
-
Assessing Writing Oct 2026Mapping the synergistic interaction of L2 learners’ writing self-efficacy and writing performance: The serial mediating effects of writing anxiety and motivation ↗Ali Derakhshan; Andy Jiahao Liu
-
Assessing Writing Oct 2026Effects of varying time constraints on quality, linguistic features, and fluency behaviors in L2 writing ↗Jongbong Lee; Charlene Polio
-
Argumentation Jun 2026Jos Hornikx; Stefanie van Doorn-Kemperman
-
Argumentation Apr 2026Linguistic Choices and Argumentative Effects: An Experimental Investigation of Presentational Means in the ‘Van Gelder’ Court Case ↗Maarten van Leeuwen; Hannah De Mulder; Astrid den Hollander
-
Assessing Writing Jan 2026Is it beneficial to strive for perfection in writing?: Exploring the relationship between perfectionism, motivational regulation, and second language (L2) writing performance ↗Li Dong