Includes bibliographical references (p. 301-313) and index Contents: Introduction: Changing meanings -- The sacred breast: goddesses, priestesses, biblical women, saints, and madonnas -- The erotic breast: "orbs of heavenly frame" -- The domestic breast: a Dutch interlude -- The political breast: bosoms for the nation -- The psychological breast: minding the body -- The commercialized breast: from corsets to cyber-sex -- The medical breast: life-giver and life-destroyer -- The liberated breast: politics, poetry, and pictures -- The breast in crisis