Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol quote on tattoos & being transgender
Filed by: Bil Browning
October 19, 2009 12:30 PM
http://www.bilerico.com/2009/10/dan_browns_the_lost_symbol_quote_on_tattoos_being.php#moreI'm reading Dan Brown's new novel, The Lost Symbol, and came across this snippet at the beginning of the book. He's describing the book's villain, Mal'akh, who is heavily tattooed. (emphasis his)
snip
The act of tattooing one's skin was a transformative declaration of power, an announcement to the world: I am in control of my own flesh. The intoxicating feeling of control derived from physical transformation had addicted millions to flesh-altering practices... cosmetic surgery, body piercing, bodybuilding, and steroids... even bulimia and transgendering. The human spirit craves mastery over it's carnal shell.
Some thoughts and a question after the jump.
Leaving aside the obvious simplification that arises from reducing gender reassignment surgery to tattoos and piercings (after all, how many people have committed suicide because they couldn't get their nipple pierced?) or the fact that some transgender folks never have surgery, the line of reasoning is quite compelling. The other slights, of course, are that being transgender is deemed "an addiction" and it's used to portray a negative like steroid use or eating disorders.
