Rough Draft

Hannah Beecham

2/6/15

Is thin really still in?

Some would argue that body image isn’t an identity, but for females the way we feel in our skin is everything. How we feel we look on the outside definitely affects the way we feel on the inside and as a result, alters the way we portray ourselves.

Female body image is and I believe always will be an issue among women. As humans we are wired with a competitive nature. We want to be the best, and will do anything to be so. For males body image tends to not hold such importance but for females vanity tends to hold priority. Growing up in a generation who is heavily influenced by social media, girls are constantly being polluted by unobtainable images. The media sets unrealistic goals for females, making the average girl constantly doubt herself.

Being a female myself, I have experienced and witnessed the struggle of acceptance among girls and their bodies. 91% of women surveyed on multiple college campus’s say they had attempted to control their weight through dieting. For me it all started in seventh grade. I had just started a new school and was in my early stages of puberty. As my hormones where changing so was my body, but it felt like everyone around me was stuck in their petite childish bodies. As I began growing I did everything I could to stunt the process. I would go days without eating and the results were beyond satisfying. People in school would often comment on how skinny I looked, and hearing that would make it all worth it. I grew out of these habits when I reached high school but the thoughts never left.

            Being on a college campus my feelings towards my body have definitely heightened. Living with 3 other girls and “being in these peer-dominated environments increase(s) appearance comparisons to same-sex peers, or heighten self-consciousness due to the presence of potential dating partners.(MAKING THING NOT IN)”. My self-consciousness has absolutely become more prominent. I have started watching what I am eating and going to the gym on a regular basis. I interviewed one of my roommates to see if she felt the same way as me. She said “ On a good day, I would say I am satisfied when I look in the mirror. Most days, I am either indifferent or unsatisfied. I think girls feel like they are in a competition to see who can have the best body. Though it would be difficult to get away from that, I think girls should try and be more supportive of all body types and aim for a healthy body instead of a ‘good’ body”. As females we owe it to ourselves and each other to ingrain confidence rather than to detract it. We need to create a culture, which accepts all shapes and sizes.

            As a fashion major, I sometimes feel guilty that I am going into an industry that contributes so heavily to female insecurities. We live in a world where everything we do or say has had some sort of influence from the media. Going into an industry, which pushes for thin to be in, I feel obligated to try and make a change. I believe that all women are beautiful as cliché as that sounds. The human body is a work of art and our flaws are what make us unique.

 Although I say all of the above the pressure to be a certain size is definitely overpowering. Even though I know the right thing is to break the social norm, and just be comfortable with the way that I am, it is easier said than done. A lot of girls think that being skinny will make them happy but we all know that’s not the truth. There is more to life than a size.

Responses to peers

Week one: 

I think you misread the assignment, you were supposed to write about a personal quality. 

I have always found vegetarianism fascinating. I'm a huge foodie and I cant imagine not eating meat, almost every single meal I eat is accompanied by some sort of meat. I once "tried" to be a vegetarian and to say I failed is an understatement, I lasted one day. 

Ever since I started driving I've also become obsessed with cars, and have a list of dream cars. 

Week two:

That's awesome that you were able to break free from what was expected of you and instead follow your passions. 

As girls, I think we've all experienced some type of exclusion. As they say, girls will be girls.

Week three:

I really like your questions and I cant wait to see the responses since I know little to none about Korean culture. 

I also agree with the previous responses, I think getting two different prospectives from two different generations will create a great interview!

Really like your topic and I think once the questions are ordered correctly and combined, it will make for a great interview!

Week four:

Really like how you open up with a question, makes me want to keep reading!

I think your topic is unique and I definitely want to know more. But, like Sahana said I'm not really sure what your topic is trying to convey? Maybe try for a stronger thesis?

This is a good start but I am confused about your topic. How can distance be an identity? 

I like how you start with a strong I statement and then define what an artist is. I did find this to be a little choppy especially to be an intro, I feel like an intro should be clean and introduce you to the topic gracefully.

Prompts

Week 1

I am a traveler. I have lived in three different countries, and three different states. Not only have I lived in amazing places I have also just been fortunate enough to travel for pleasure. I have been to over 20 countries and seen things most people won't ever get to see. My dad is in the tv industry so to say we've lived/seen some amazing places in an understatement. I was born and raised in London till the age of 10, in between I lived in LA for a year, and Spain for 8 months. At the age of 10 I moved to the mainline (the suburbs of philly), and just a couple months ago I moved to New York. What does it mean to be a traveller? Well I would consider myself multi cultural, I would say I look at things in a different way and I would say I can adjust to new situations gracefully (since I have had a lot of practice at being new). Although all of the above sounds peachy, I have had a tremendous amount of loss in my life. Living half way around the world from all of your family minus your immediate family is and was a major obstacle. I also have left behind a lot of friends along the way, which for a young girl is basically the end of the world. For the most part I wouldn't change being a traveler, because as they say everything happens for a reason.

Week 2 

It was my first day of school in America. I turned up in a funky European outfit while my peers were dressed primarily head to toe in Abercrombie and Fitch. Just from the first moment I stepped into the classroom I knew I didn't fit in. My voice was masked with a thick British accent while all my classmates had high pitched american voices. All the girls were already friends. When it got to lunch time I made my way over to a group of girls who seemed nice. My dad had packed me a lunchable for lunch as a treat and I remember offering up the peanut butter cup since I have always hated peanut butter. The girl next to me thought I was offering up my entire lunch and snatched it from my hands. All I wanted was my lunchable since it was something we never had in london and I was so excited about it, but I was the new girl I couldn't say no. I spent the rest of lunch in silence.

Week 3

Female body image among college students

1.Are you satisfied when you look in the mirror?

2.How has the way you view your body changed since being in college?

3.Do you think body image is an issue on college campuses?

4.How can we change the way girls view their bodies?

5.Have your eating habits changed since being a college student? If so, how/why?

6. What is the overall attitude on campus about girl’s body image?

7. What expectations do you think girls have of themselves, and what expectation do

you think the opposite sex has for girl’s bodies?

8. Where/who does the pressure come from?

9.  Would you say you are confident about your body?

10. What do all the above say about your identity?

Week 4 

            Some would argue that body image isn’t an identity, but for females the way we feel in our skin is everything. How we feel we look on the outside definitely affects the way we feel on the inside and as a result, alters the way we portray ourselves. Female body image is and I believe always will be an issue among women. As humans we are wired with a competitive nature. We want to be the best, and will do anything to be so. For males body image tends to not hold such importance but for females vanity tends to hold priority. Growing up in a generation who is heavily influenced by social media, girls are constantly being polluted by unobtainable images. The media sets unrealistic goals for females, making the average girl constantly doubt herself.

Reading/Responses

Week 1 :

“Captain America”

This article is not only about confidence but also about racial stereotypes. We all have a preconceived idea that all 

superheroes or imaginary character are white. That may sound untrue but when you really think about it what superhero is 

white and what imaginary character is black? I know I was raised with the belief that Jesus, Santa, the tooth fairy, ext. are all 

white. Its time that we break racial barriers, why cant Santa be black or be Asian? "Vishavjit Singh took a stand to try and 

break the norm but as he saw everyone that day took a double take because no ones used to seeing a skinny, dark skinned, 

Captain America in a turban."

 “Faking it”

This article is all about how one portrays themselves on the internet. These days we base a lot of our opinions of people on the way that they look on the internet. You may not have even met them but you can come up with preconceived ideas just by ones facebook profile. I know before I met  two of my roommates I did some hard core facebook stalking and to say I was scared was an extreme understatement. Both girls had purple hair and facial piercings, and the conclusions me and my other roommate were coming too were cruel and unjust. 

“Journals”

The third article was about an African American man and how he felt he was being socially isolated. I can definitely relate, I am used to being thought of as spoiled and no one really see’s me for who I really am.  

 Quote:

“ And we were able to lay to rest any anxieties or inhibitions in those moments — about other people, about the unknown, about ourselves, about violating other people’s personal spaces or not understanding their beliefs.”

Week 2: 

"Why women smile", in this video the narrator/author is expressing why she thinks women are always taught to smile. We live in a culture where men are treated as hierarchy. Men are told to project out while women are told to hold in. Women are taught to watch what they eat while men are taught to "eat like a man". The double standard we have created is outrageous. Why should women hold back? We are just as much of a person as a man. In ideal world men and women would be treated equally but in reality that is just never going to happen. We are raised from a very young age that one sex is better than the other. Young boys play with trucks and they build things where girls sit around and play dress up and experiment with makeup on a plastic dolls head. Which to you seems more useful?

"This is water", is a video all about what we as the younger generation have to look forward to, or not. There some aspects of this video which I highly agree with and others which I disagree with. Life is what you make it, if you pick a job which bores you then yes, your life will most likely turn out like this video, but if you choose a job which you enjoy going too then you already have contradicted this video. I know getting a job isn't that easy and thats why a lot of people get stuck with a life like this video.

Week 3:

Goswami, S., Sachdeva, S., & Sachdeva, R. (2012). Body image satisfaction among female college students. Industrial Psychiatry Journal, 21(2), 168-172. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/0972-6748.119653

 “Individuals who perceive their bodies negatively with regard to culturally valued features may have low self-esteem, low satisfaction in life and feeling of inferiority and pose themselves at higher risk for depression, anxiety or eating disorders. At the highest level of dissatisfaction, this may result in significant impairment of social, educational and/or occupational functioning. Currently, beautiful is considered good and thinness is synonymous with beauty, which makes it valued by society while its opposite, obesity, is strongly rejected. Although the ideals of female beauty vary as a function of esthetical standards adopted at each time, studies show that women have tried to change their bodies to follow these standards.”

“A study was undertaken to determine body image satisfaction and perception among newly entrant girl students (17-22 years) of a professional institution. In the present study nearly 83.33% rated their perceived body image from good to excellent while overall 13.54% were dissatisfied with their image.”

GillenEva, M. M. (2006). Gender role development and body image among male and female first year college students. Sex Roles, 55(1-2), 25-37. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11199-006-9057-4

“Sociocultural factors in the U.S. encourage individuals to

be preoccupied with their weight, shape, and appearance

(Thompson, Heinberg, Altabe, & Tantleff-Dunn, 1999).

Female college students in particular report a high prevalence

of body image problems, such as body dissatisfaction

and poor weight management practices”

“Being in these peer-dominated

environments may increase appearance comparisons to

same-sex peers, or heighten self-consciousness due to the

presence of potential dating partners. Moreover, involvement

in campus organizations that encourage the importance of

attractiveness (e.g., sororities; Schulken, Pinciaro, Sawyer,

Jensen, & Hoban, 1997) may promote changes in body

image. Due to group values about appearance, students in

these organizations may be more attentive to their looks, and

thus, may continually evaluate how they “measure up” to

cultural and perhaps group-specific beauty standards.”

“Historically, studies have included mostly

European Americans, and have found that women express

greater dissatisfaction than men do with their appearance and

weight, and they place greater importance on and invest

more in their appearance than men do (Mintz & Betz, 1986;

Muth & Cash, 1997). In contrast, other work illustrates that

men and women experience similar levels of discontent

with their bodies when controlling for the direction of

dissatisfaction (Cohn & Adler, 1992; Tantleff-Dunn &

Thompson, 1995). Specifically, Cohn and Adler found that

most women want to be thinner, whereas men are fairly

split in their desire to be thinner or heavier. “

 MAKING THIN NOT IN: PROGRAM PROMOTES HEALTHY BODY IMAGE AMONG FEMALE COLLEGE STUDENTS. (2011, Mar 07). US Fed News Service, Including US State News Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/855514334?accountid=10559

"Body dissatisfaction and dieting are two risk factors that may trigger the onset of eating disorders in susceptible individuals," said Dianna Schalles, registered dietitian at Lafene and adviser for the Sensible Nutrition And body image Choices program. "The Reflections program, through a series of oral, written and behavioral activities, asks participants to challenge the thin-ideal standard of female beauty."

Schalles said that a recent poll conducted by the National Eating Disorders Association found that 20 percent of a group of 1,000 students nationwide said they had struggled with an eating disorder. This statistic is comparable to an estimated 4 percent of the population at large.

"More and more college-age students are experimenting with unhealthy weight loss methods and body dissatisfaction," she said. "Eating disorders in general have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, and the longer they go untreated, the lower the chance of recovery." 

Week 4:

Going to a strict private school we were taught to cite from a very young age and its never really been too much of an issue. We were taught to use a site called "noodletools" which made citing very simple. The only thing I've always found a little bit challenging is in text citations. I find them extremely frustrating and annoying. The only other thing I would like to improve is the way I weave quotes into my papers. I sometimes find it hard to not make my quote stick out like a sore thumb and instead have them be woven in to add to my material.