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Feeling Lovely: An Examination of the Value of Beauty for People Dancing with Parkinson's

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 May 2015

Sara Houston
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Abstract

Against the backdrop of a four-year study into dance for people with Parkinson's, I examine one woman's claim that dancing makes her feel beautiful, and, as such, is fundamental to her well-being. I debate the challenge that this claim poses to those who argue that beauty in dance is at best unimportant, at worst disenfranchising. In debating this challenge, I create a link between aesthetics and health through a reformulation of the value of beauty in the context of chronic illness and well-being. This link then allows me to discuss how feeling lovely could become relevant and meaningful within the context of participating in dance.

Keywords

Balletbeautychronic illnesscommunity dancedisabilityParkinson'swell-being.
Type
Articles
Information
Dance Research Journal , Volume 47 , Issue 1 , April 2015 , pp. 27 - 43
Copyright
Copyright © Congress on Research in Dance 2015 

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Interviews Cited

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Other Personal Communications Cited

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