Under the Skin: Negotiating the Affect of Tattoo Removal

Abstract

This autoethnography analyses the construction of personhood in relation to tattoos and their removal by exploring the affective response the author had during his first tattoo removal experience. Influenced by Renato Rosaldo’s imperialist nostalgia, the paper explores how this response was negotiated through the memories of a younger self in conjunction with present circumstances as a graduate student. In doing so, the paper reflects on the ever-changing relationship between the author and the tattoo and the role this connection has played and continues to play within the constitution of the author’s subjectivity.