...mother was in shock about the untouched photographs of the model saying, “Look! She has stretch marks!” You could hear it in her voice how surprised she was as she showed her daughter. Girls who shop with their mothers become influenced by the images around them; a survey of girls’ ages 9 to 10, shockingly resulted in 40% of those young girls begin to lose weight. It is very damaging that the media has critical effects toward a women’s self-esteem, which may trail from adolescent age to middle age. Tall, thin, curvy and leggy with big breasts, flowing hair and toned bodies would be how you would describe a perfect ideal body, however that is not always the case. Over the past few centuries, Media has increasingly lead young girls into internal conflicts upon their image. From the latest TV shows, magazines and now the use of social media; Female celebrities exemplify this perfect ideal image. Adolescents visualize these female celebrities as their role models and begin comparing their own body image to theirs, forming discrepancy of unrealistic body shape. Bell states, Negative body image may be defined as the psychologically salient discrepancy between a person’s perceived body and their ideal body (479). This definition is the truth in what many girls experience when comparing their body shape to female role models. The photographs of models raise attention of unrealistic beauty being celebrated by the media, these models have airbrushed skin or effortless hair. However, we tend...
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...health problems, including eating disorders and low self-esteem. Body Image: Self-Esteem and Identity Several individual variables predict or influence the relationship between media exposure and body disturbances. Most of the research has been done with women and girls, for whom the “body perfect” ideal is ultra-thin, and whose media models are typically underweight (Tantleff-Dunn, 1999). To determine whether viewing images of thin models influences how women feel about their bodies, there were many studies done using the social comparison framework, finding that women engage in “upward social comparisons,” comparing themselves to the thin models depicted in the media. When women believe that they do not measure up to the models, they feel more negatively about their own weight and body. For example, Lin and Kulik (2006) found that college women experienced decreased body satisfaction and confidence of attractiveness after viewing a single image of a thin woman. Another study by Lin and Kulik assessed the effects of media images on weight satisfaction. Female undergraduate students were exposed to thin models, average size models, and plus-size models, and results showed that weight...
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...they must be thin. So-called “plus-size” models are a growing presence on magazine covers, television and lingerie catalogues but at the Fashion Weeks of New York and London they are still the exception. In a reflection of the expanding market for women who defy the super-slender ideals of the catwalk, leading fashion magazine Elle offered its readers a special issue in March featuring larger than normal models and sales jumped. British designer Mark Fast introduced shows last year in which the models were all above a British size twelve, and American size eight, following criticism that his dresses were too skinny. Despite their trailblazing status in the fashion world, when it comes to bigger models New York and London are slightly out of step. The move towards more generously sized models has accelerated since the death from anorexia in 2006 of Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston, which shocked the fashion world. Spain and Italy banned models below a certain body mass index after her death, while Britain stopped short; banning only those aged under sixteen from the catwalk. “Sixteen corresponds to a level of maturity,” said Caroline Ruth of the British Fashion Council. When Frederique van der Wal, a former Victoria’s Secret model, attended designers’ shows during New York’s Fashion Week this month, she was “shocked” by the waiflike models who paraded down the catwalk. They seemed even skinnier than in previous years. “We know seeing super-thin models can play a role...
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...The Real Skinny In the article entitled The Real Skinny by the author Belinda Luscombe states that don’t blame models for being too thin. Look to the fat cats of fashion. After reading the article I believe the main idea the author is trying to make is that models are skinny not because they want to be, but because they have to be or they will not get any work. The people who make the big decisions in the fashion world wants all the models to be super skinny, but nobody will come forward and take responsibility for it. The author also states that consumers take a part in why models are too thin now days too. One of the first examples the author uses is when she talks about the modeling agencies, the motherly folks who inform the models that they can eat or work but not both, say it’s because photographers demand subjects with skin, bones and preferably nothing else. The photographers say it’s the designers who set the limits. The designers blamed the stylists, the people who put together the look for the photo shoots at the magazines. The magazines say its Hollywood or its advertisers. And the advertisers say people find their products better when on, next to, or usually just barely covering slender body types. By putting this information in the article the author shows the reader that everyone in the fashion world plays the balm game and nobody takes responsibility. The next example is when the author brings the consumer in by stating what do we the people say? Do we rise up...
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...struggle-technologically raped, plagued with images of flawless, stick-thin size zero women who appear to defuse perfection from the very pores of their untarnished skin. Drastic medical procedures such as elective cosmetic surgery. But still, many people in our society feel unattractive and unworthy. Attractiveness is one thing that everyone craves for but can the definition of perfect be argued? The mind of today’s society conforms painstakingly to the idealist doctrine of the perfect body image; portrayed extensively by the media the media should not have this control over what beauty is. How can one say what beauty is? Aesthetic appreciation differs from an individual’s opinion to cultural preferences. One may be fascinated by a certain eye color or skin color, beauty doesn’t depreciate if one is skinny or tall or in contrast, short and fat. The media’s influence on women talking among themselves is like listening to a bombardment of groans, whines and complaints about their appearance. Observing a women eat is to watch them pick perspicaciously through food, confronting a mental battle against calorie and fat inhibitions. women have crumpled into the furthest corners of their minds during their perpetual fantasies of looking like a model. Why aren’t there enough voluptuous models on the ramp? Why does a television advertisement for some toothpaste commercial have to be a size zero models? With constant images of stick-thin, size-zero models, tiny-waisted pop princesses and actresses is putting...
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...(296).” She also goes on to explain that compared to today voluptuous women were the more preferred women compared to those that were slim (297). So why has today’s society become so obsessed with being so exceedingly thin when for many years before curvy women were considered ideal? Many women, teenagers, and even young girls look at themselves...
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...women? The roots are economic, by presenting an ideal difficult to achieve and maintain the cosmetic and diet product industries are assured of growth and profits. Take Kristen of River Edge, New Jersey, just like most girls at the age of 15 “she started to develop curves; she was disappointed that breasts did not follow” (Sweeney). Girls rose in a culture of celebrity obsession and makeover TV shows believe that a “shapely bust line” and a thin body will let them have it all. Women who are insecure about their bodies are more likely to invest in beauty products, new clothes, diet aids, and plastic surgery. It is estimated that the diet industry alone is worth 40 to 100 billion a year selling temporary weight loss, 90 to 95% of dieters regain the lost weight (BBC). American Society for Aesthetic Plastic surgery shows that the number of operations performed on 18 or younger have more than tripled over a 10 year period from 59,890 in 1997 to 205,119 in 2007 (Sweeney). On the other hand, research indicates that exposure to images of thin, young, air-brushed female bodies is linked to depression, loss of self-esteem and the development of unhealthy eating habits and cosmetic surgery in women and girls. The American research group Anorexia Nervosa & Related Eating Disorders, Inc. says that one out of every four college-aged women uses...
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...What is beauty? Is it having a skinny body, a blemish free face, and long blonde hair? For some girls it is. Beauty is a main concern for many girls, especially as they are growing up and going through adolescents. They admire women in magazines and on television, dreaming to be just like them. Unfortunately, what they do not realize is that no one has the perfect smile, perfect skin, or perfect hair. The media puts forth an image of beauty that is unattainable. They do this by showing unhealthy stick-thin girls with “flaw-less” attributes. In the sick world of marketing, the companies that produce an item to sell, such as make up, depend on the insecurities of females. The companies use thin girls with a perfect complexion and a killer smile to flaunt around with the product they are trying to sell. When girls see this, they think to themselves, “Oh I wish I looked like that.” or “This is how I should look, the way I look right now isn’t right.” Because we only display thin girls in our media, girls feel as if that is how they should be. The media negatively influences girls’ perception of body image, which can cause eating disorders and low self-esteem. There have been plenty of studies linked to the negative impacts of body image caused by the media. Here is an example of one study found on thebodyproject.com, “In 1999, Anne Becker and Rebecca Burwell of the Harvard Eating Disorders Center found that media exposure dramatically increased the incidence of eating disorders...
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...eating disorders and an inaccurate definition of beauty, advertisements and thin models can also serve as role-model and as inspiration. From dolls to Victoria’s Secret models, women are exposed to all types of media images that portray “the thin ideal” from a very early age. Media pressure to be thin can cause individuals to have negative thoughts about their appearance. According to psychologist Tiffanie Domil, “Body image is the way people perceive themselves, and the way they believe others perceive them” (“The Influence of Media Images”). Therefore body image is all about what we see about ourselves, and our opinions of our bodies, even though they opinions may not be exactly true. For example, one woman might think she is overweight when in reality she is perfectly healthy. There have been multiple studies done to connect media to women’s low self-esteem. One example of the effects of media is in Fiji in 1995, when televisions were introduced. Statistics show that after 38 months of being exposed to media, females started to be more conscious about their bodies and even started dieting (“The Media”). 74% of women reported feeling “too fat,” and 62% said they had dieted in the past month (“The Media”). This means that the introduction of television had a direct link to women’s low self-esteem and poor body image. According to the 1997 Body Image Survey, 43% of women said that very thin models made them feel insecure about their...
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...Dying to be thin In the DVD “Dying to be Thin” Nova takes an investigative look into the world of eating disorders. This investigation reveals the truth about the causes, complexities, and treatments people go through as they battle with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. This DVD allows for an inside view into the personals lives of real people and reveals the mental and physical struggles they face in their daily fight for recovery and survival. It is a sobering but ultimately hopeful documentary which examines a disturbing increase in the prevalence of eating disorders. It interviews students, dancers, fashion models and other young women who are seeking recovery or are doing their best to conquer their disease. The exploited and unrealistic image of being thin is a sad, but true portrayal of what people go through, women especially, in today’s society and the pressures they face not just for acceptance, but also for survival in the brutal world of fashion and sports. American has fallen captive to the unrealistic belief that in order to be beautiful, successful, athletic, or even socially accepted one needs to be thin. Statistics displayed in the video state that an estimated eight million people suffer from anorexia and bulimia. The target population for the DVD is all young women who are dissatisfied with themselves based off the belief from society that relates being thin person is happy and healthy, when that portrayal could not be further from the...
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...Rachel Hoffman and Sarah Gentil Ms. Wolverton English 1010 January 9, 2013 Body Brainwash? From the beginning civilizations all had their own ideas of the perfect body shape; this ideal image of the body has evolved throughout time, and continues to this day. In this essay we will discuss different aspects of what America specifically believes the ideal body image should be today. The different issues we will be discussing will involve: concerns with the body image, obesity, cosmetic surgery, compulsive exercise, masculinity and models. There are heated debates about whether these topics are negative or positive. Every part of the world has some kind of ideal body image and will go to certain extremes trying to achieve this perfect image. Probably the most known would be foot binding. Some historical records claim that foot binding began its origin in the Song Dynasty 960-1279 A.D.; the practice was outlawed in 1915 (Lim). Yet some continued in secret. At that time foot binding was a status symbol and the only way for a woman to be able to get married in a decent setting. There are a couple of survivors from this practice, Zhou Guizhen, 86, now regrets binding her feet, yet understands that she had no choice. No one would have married her and at the time that was what women were expected to do (Lim). On the other side of the world, Europe had their own opinion on what the ideal body image was. It wasn’t tiny feet, but tiny waists. In Dave Girdle’s site the author gives...
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...the majority of them being white people (Bennett). Researchers do not know exactly what the causes are of anorexia, or other eating disorders for that matter. They say eating disorders can be caused by many things such as: biological, psychological, social, cultural and even family factors (Gowan). For many of the sufferers, anorexia becomes almost like a religion. People feel this way because, they have power over themselves. They control what they can eat and they feel in power when they do this (Bennett). A story I found off of ebsco, (academic resource website) was a girl who dreamed of being a ballerina. She saw many dancers who were thin and good at dancing and that’s what she wanted to be like. This girl was only 15 years old when she started to starve herself. It was all because of a role model she looked up too. This girl lost 30 pounds and she still didn’t think that she had any problems. She wouldn’t admit to anorexia. Most people with the disease don’t admit to it because they feel that they don’t have a problem. Finally after a year, she...
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...2013 Dying to be Thin – Societies Dirty Little Secrete In the video “Dying to be Thin “ Nova takes an investigative look into the world of eating disorders. This investigation reveals the truth about the causes, complexities, and treatments people go through as they battle with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. This video allows for an inside view into the personal lives of real people and reveals the mental and physical struggles they face in their daily fight for recovery and survival. The exploited and unrealistic image of being thin is a sad, but true portrayal of what people go through, women especially, in today’s society and the pressures they face not just for acceptance, but also for survival in the brutal world of fashion and sports. America has fallen captive to the unrealistic belief that in order to be beautiful, successful, athletic, or even socially accepted one needs to be thin. Statistics displayed in the video state that an estimated eight million people suffer from anorexia and bulimia. This epidemic will continue to grow, because the media continues to run ads that portray under weight female models as sexy and successful, and society as a whole strives to become just that. Society tends to relate the image of a thin person to a person who is healthy and happy, when sometimes that portrayal could not be further from the truth. As shown in the video, being thin doesn’t always mean a person’s healthy. Too many people, women...
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...Social Marketing – Anti-Anorexia Campaign (Italy) X444 Background While there has been much attention focused on the obesity problem in the developed world, another serious health issue is anorexia nervosa. There is tremendous pressure in the developed world for women to be extremely thin. The current ideal female body is impossible to achieve for the majority of women and is markedly different from the classical ideal dating back to the Greeks and even as recently as the 1950s and 1960s. By today’s standards, Marilyn Monroe and Raquel Welch would be considered “fat.” Venus de Milo Ancient Greece Marilyn Monroe 1950s Raquel Welch 1960s Keira Knightley 2000s While obesity is certainly unhealthy, the social pressure for women to be extremely thin is also unhealthy. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD) (2007), in the U.S. 7 million women and 1 million men suffer from eating disorder mental illness. Lauter (2008) quoted Marleen S. Williams, a psychology professor at Brigham Young University in Utah who said studies show fewer eating disorders in "cultures that value full-bodied women." • Health impact of eating disorders (ANAD, 2007, except as noted below) o Physical § 20% fatality rate (CBS, 2007) § Malnutrition § Dehydration § Ruptured stomach § Serious heart, kidney, and liver damage § Tooth/gum erosion § Tears of the esophagus o Mental § Depression § Low self-esteem § Shame and guilt § Impaired...
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...affect of the media on the development of the eating disorders like Anorexia, Bulimia or Compulsive Overeating can’t be disproved.Since from the very early age the people are pelted with the images along with the messages that reinforce the idea to be pleased and successful that the individual must be lean. Now, as seen in daily day to day life that it is notified as a message that fat is bad, whether it is a television, a magazine, or a newspaper, or listening to the radio, or whether shopping in the mall. The most fearsome part is that the destructive message it conveys is somehow reaching towards children. Adolescents sometimes really feel like fatally blemished if their hips, weight etc. doesn’t match up I comparison to those of famous models and actors. Today even the children of the elementary school aged are also obsessed in respect to their weight. Even if the contention is also made that the media’s depiction of women is just only a mirror of the society and not as an instigator, the media will still need to consider for the fact for at least upholding the dysfunction. MEDIA INFLUENCE As seen today the media is almost an important part of about most of the individual in the society. Most of the people living in the society either have a radio transmitter or a television set. Magazines and the newspapers are also used by majority of people in the...
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