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| Dennis Avner - Cat man |
My first interview was with Dennis Avner, also known as Cat Man, who is an extreme example of how intense body modification can be. He modified his body to resemble the features of a totem animal, Cat which means Independence. Once I had got hold of Dennis, I was able to ask when he started modifying his body and whether he felt happier with his modifications. Dennis made it clear that his reasoning was because of his traditions and he was around 20 when he decided to change. He said “I feel more comfortable with myself now” which shows his self esteem has increased considerable amounts and its apparent that the people among his tribal culture have strict beliefs in to why they feel it is necessary to change to feel accepted and to gain higher status. Some would argue that although it is impossible to recognise Dennis’ original characteristics or to distinguish his personal features from what is real and what is modified, it is clear that Dennis is on his way to accomplish his ideal self. In the theory of gatekeeping, trying to accomplish an expectation, we filter out information that could cause negative perceptions and instead express our ideals on to others. Dennis appears to neglect any parts of his original personality and is now completely immersed in his new persona.
