Lizzie Miller Body Image Analysis

The media group that retouches images skews the “normal” body image of people through many of its outlets, including models in advertising and magazines, and actors in TV and movie productions. “The average model portrayed in the media is approximately 5’11” and 120 pounds. By contrast, the average American woman is 5’4” and 140 pounds” (Holmstrom, 2004). This statistic shows how the media manipulates consumers into believing that because they are not what the average model looks like, they are not living up to a certain standard which implies that they need to look like that to be beautiful. Another research fact that shows a similar concept is that, “In the United States, 94% of female characters in television programs are thinner than the average American woman, with whom the media frequently associate happiness, desirability, and success in life” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This association of female thinness and happiness, desirability and success makes consumers believe they must achieve this unrealistic thinness to achieve more ultimate goals and fulfillment in life. “The media also explicitly instruct how to attain thin bodies by dieting, exercising, and body-contouring surgery, encouraging female consumers to believe that they can and should be thin” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This idealization of thinness in the media is seen so much, and is extremely harmful to women’s self confidence and is often associated with body image dissatisfaction, which can be a precursor to social anxiety, depression, eating disturbances, and poor self-esteem (Yamamiya et al.,

In Susan Bordo’s article “Never Just Pictures: Bodies and Fantasies” this is an article that is informative as well as interesting. Bordo mentions celebrity names like Alicia Silverstone and famous dieting products like Citra Lean to introduce the “thin” trend in today’s popular culture. The author explains how today’s society explores different media cites to acknowledge how individuals should appear in today’s world. Advertisements have also become a big part on the reflection of society’s beliefs. Bordo talks about body figures that were once considered normal, have become known as an abnormal appearance. Bordo wants to convince the audience that being thin has become an issue that must be addressed by the general public,

In the article “Don’t Ban Photos of Skinny Models”, by Vanessa Friedman; who is the chief fashion critic for the New York Times. In Friedman’s article she is talking about how she doesn’t want to ban certain photos or ads of skinny models because she thinks it is wrong to say or think a skinny or thin women’s body is unhealthy by upright looking at her appearance. The purpose is that how she doesn’t want to ban certain photos or ads of skinny models because she thinks it’s unnecessary to just create a nonsense situation and also because people are just judging a skinny or slim body that may be healthy or unhealthy. In this case the audience, most likely women disagree with Friedman because they think they should ban photos or ads because they are unrealistic to them.

In Susan Bordo’s article “Never Just Pictures,” she expresses her understanding of how images in the media alter the way our society sees itself. She starts off addressing how critical society has become about the weight of those in the spot light. This cruelty has emerged from critics comparing those in the media such as, athletes, actors, news castors, etc. to super models who are expected to remain at an extremely low weight percentage for fashion shows and photo shoots. In just about every magazine, there are advertisements for a weight loss products or promises, or show models glamorized while they look to be on the verge of starvation. She implies that magazine editors only care about selling products and do not consider the effect the

I am writing in response to your request that I analyze “Don’t Ban Photos of Skinny Models” and make a recommendation for or against publication in The Shorthorn. I have assessed the rhetorical appeals of the article and determined that it will make a big impact on the readers of The Shorthorn. With that said, readers are very likely to find this article interesting, since it addresses a very controversial issue of how women are given unrealistic body images by the media that they are pressured to adhere to. I am confident that most of the UTA community would agree that the media has an unrealistic ideal for what a woman’s body should look like, and Friedman’s claim that women should be able to determine how their body should look.

Media has the ability to reinforce any stereotypical image with most viewers unaware that they are being unconsciously exposed to this material (Kenschaft et al. 2015,

Malcolm X, a civil rights activist, stated that “The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have to power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent and that’s power. Because they control the minds of masses.” Unfortunately, some people lose their lives trying to get an “ideal body.” From the article “NYC Girls Project - Media and Girls,” this organization conducted a study in 2010 that stated that “63 percent of girls think the body image represented by the fashion industry is unrealistic and 47% think it’s unhealthy. Due to these reasons and others, the media influences individuals in a negative way because of how it reinforces racial/gender stereotypes.

For many years the media has been blasted as the cause of numerous negative events that continue to happen in our society. Anti-media supporters have placed the blame for increased violence in the nation on media’s exposure to violent entertainment shows and movies. Media’s promotion of the thin ideal in female models and actors as well as media’s use of very muscular male models and actors may perpetuate the idea that the average person should either be skinny or muscular. An average person who is not skinny or muscular may feel as though they are not living up to society standards which greatly effects their emotional self-esteem. However not every person encountered indicates they are negatively affected by media’s emphasis on skinny or muscular people.

The message of this photograph I chose is that you can in any case be seen as appealing even at a more mature age. In this image we can see how the woman is kind of modeling for her partner in a “diaper” as if it were a thong, which is what is most commonly worn by women of younger age. This would make us believe or understand that she is in a way secure about her sexuality, despite the fact that she is of greater age and she attempts to remain in touch and with knowledge of what is socially and sexually modern. In the image we can see that her partner is in a way embarrassed or ashamed of her behavior. He demonstrates to be at peace with his current sexuality and that he does not need to be current with any current sexuality behavior.

Society follows a norm that requires a general agreement between groups in order to function as a whole. Human beings are social “group animals” (Lessing 1) and need each other to survive with the intention to get along or fit in. These desires to conform “influence our idea about ourselves” (Lessing 1) and people lose a sense of their inner self based on these insecurities. The false concept of ideal beauty of body image is displayed in the media and it pressures young women and men to accept this particular notion of beauty. The role of the media comes into play because it pressures individuals to give in, since they appeal to our need, which is to be accepted. Although, people oppose to media pressuring individuals to conform, it is clear

The media can strongly effect what we perceive our body shape to be and what we believe our body shape should be. While it is primarily believed to affect women, more research is beginning to focus on male and various gender identities’ eating and body image issues. Adolescents and young adults are at the greatest risk of having eating and body image issues that can cause mental health concerns. This can lead to dangerous, unhealthy habits in all genders. In this lab, we hope to examine the relationship between various self-reports of behavior, cognitions, and feelings towards body image, eating, and societal standards of body shape.

It is a little strange that this should be so. After all, these are not the conventional images of nudity that society judges as beautiful. In her essay “Beauty (re)discovers the male body”, feminist philosopher Susan Bordo explores the female stereotypes to which I refer. In a world ruled by images, she claims, women portrayed in the media influence the average woman’s notion that she must be seen. Further, media’s emphasis on displaying women with thin figures signals to society that this is the normative body type, the ideal. Even those advertisements which are meant to highlight women’s “great careers or exciting adventures” (216) are pervaded by thinness: “The plots may say: ‘The world is yours.’ The bodies caution: ‘But only if you aren’t fat.’” (Bordo, 216) Thus, it is unsurprising that women internalize these messages and reproduce them with rigor, criticizing others’ who might not live up to this stereotype. When obese women do appear in the media, such as in diet commercials, their bodies are portrayed as undesirable. Thus, the everyday obese woman is prompted to be ashamed of her body. She is signaled hide it, with or without clothes, when she knows herself be the object of assessment.

When Victoria’s Secret is allowed to have models prance around on screen but Lane Bryant Ads (lingerie for plus size women) is banned then there’s a problem. The media is portraying these models who are thin to the point where it is unhealthy. And the media is feeding society lies. A perfect example is of Gerran Tyler. Tyler was a 12 year old supermodel. She walks the run way for clients like Marc Jacobs, Calvin Klein, and Betsey Johnson. She’s tall, thin, the perfect model because she hasn’t hit puberty yet. She walked during New York Fashion Week and posed for these designer brands advertisements. This body type is unachievable for almost all adult women (Roberts). Somebody in their twenties or thirties doesn’t have the ability to look like a twelve year old girl, but this is how these designers are telling us to look. Tyler had an amazing career and high expectations but the fame didn’t last long. As she got older and hit puberty she began to develop boobs, hips, and curves. She began getting less and less bookings. Her supermodel career was virtually over. “Eighty percent of 10-year-old American girls say they have been on a diet” and the, “Number one magic wish for young girls 11-17 is to be thinner” (Missrepresentation). This self-esteem problem with young girls is a result of these unobtainable ideas of beauty. Jennifer Siebel, creator of the documentary Missrepresentation, says

One reason mass media is so effective at portraying unrealistic body types as normal is because the mass media helps to set what is perceived as normal. In an article about the mass media’s role in body image disturbance and eating disorders, J. Kevin Thompson and Leslie Heinberg state, “A sociocultural model emphasizes that the current societal standard for thinness, as well as other difficult-to-achieve standards of beauty

Thin models and actresses appear to be the standardin today’s media, ever-present on television, and in magazines, movies,and Internet sites. Advertisements targetingyoung women feature thin and beautiful models in desirable circumstances in order to sell clothing, accessories, and other products. There is a mediated normfor body image in present-day culture, and it is characterized by bodies that are extremely thin (Hendriks&Burgoon, 2003). This mediated thin-ideal is present in mainstream media, and mainstream media are a source women turn to for information about how to look (Hendriks, 2002). Consequently, women who are heavy viewers of thin-ideal media may develop the attitude that thinness is socially desirable, experience greater body