Corpo genere e filosofia: alcune osservazioni sul campo

This paper is related to other previous investigations carried out by one of the authors, on internal body image and on how anatomical knowledge is acquired during childhood and early adolescence (Amann Gainotti,1988; Nenci, Di Prospero, Amann Gainotti ,1989). Those studies allowed the description of an approximate sequence of stages through which the internal body image is progressively build up. This process involves a steady increase of the representation of internal organs and genitalia or sex-related organs such as the penis,the uterus,the ovaries. During adulthood,contrary to previous periods,metaphorical/symbolical images of the body interior appear, and when an anatomical drawing is made,a schematic very simplified and partial image is the result.The aim of the study was to analyze the graphical behavior with relation to body interior in a group of adults, students of SSIS-Lazio (section Human Sciences). The group consisted of 30 students ,divided into 14 males and 16 females. 80 % of the subjects have a degree in Philosophy,some of them have a degree in either Psychology or History,or a teachers'college training.Results show that the drawings are divided into two main categories :A) Anatomical type drawings N=10/30B) Metaphorical/symbolic drawings N=20/30Almost all males made body interior drawings of type B ( 13/14) , while more females (9/16) interpreted body interior from an anatomical point of view.Very few subjects ( 3 females ) depicted sexual parts.These results,that seem to undervalue the body and sexuality could be related to the cultural background (Philosophy) of the subjects .