Fat Girl Gets Skinny
Women constantly face the battle of learning to love themselves in a society where natural beauty is not considered true beauty, to the point where women fight amongst each other over issues that patriarchy has instilled. For example, “body shaming is defined as inappropriate, negative statements and attitudes toward another person’s weight or size” (how is body shaming defined?). In the poem “when the Fat Girl Gets Skinny” the usage of extended metaphors about social constructs, Baird showcases how body shaming caused her to resort to having an eating disorder. In her poem, Baird states “as a child, “fat was the first word people used to describe me/ which didn’t offend me until I found out it was supposed to.” Likewise, Baird states “when I lost weight, my dad was so proud/…/so relieved he could stop worrying about me getting diabetes.” Baird metaphorically suggests the true nature of body shaming, for it taught a young, innocent girl how to grow up into a young lady who hated her own …show more content…
These societal pressures Baird faced reached the point where even her own father supported her eating disorder if it would make her skinny. By Baird using the world “fat’ she is emphasizing the innocence in the youth, for without knowing the connotation a young child would assume it was a positive attribute; however, Baird highlights the corruption of the youth by teaching them at a young age that being fat is wrong and negative, a “disease.” Using extended metaphors about social constructs and through the usage of connotation Baird highlights the stigma associated with deviating from the ideal body, and the mental and emotional consequences that come with it. This is paralleled in the poem “To the tune “The Fall of a Little Wild Goose”’ by Huang E, for through the use of extended metaphors about social constructs she showcases the shift in the woman’s perspective when being
1984 Rhetorical Analysis
1776 Words | 8 PagesA majority of the population was ugly even though the idealistic standard of beauty was far above the average person living there. Instead of tall, muscular, light, and carefree people, most ended up being dark, small, and unattractive. This relates largely in the current society because magazines portray thin to be beautiful, and until the last decade has this beauty standard started to change. When things as simple as a beauty standard are different from the current world, it allows readers to think upon the idea of living in a different
Figurative Language In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson
875 Words | 4 PagesAnderson closes the essay with a metaphor comparing the feeling of guilt and malaise Melinda has to “--a beast in my gut, I can hear it scraping away at the inside of my ribs” (Anderson). This is an example of a metaphor that compares Melinda’s unbearable weight she has in her stomach to an angry beast. It’s used to reveal Melinda’s negative thoughts towards an event that occurred in her past. With figurative language, Anderson explains how a specific conflict has affected Melinda in the present and how she must navigate the social challenges she faces in high school. She also feels like she has to hide away from everyone in her safe space, the closet, as no one will understand what went wrong.
Amber Starks 'TED Talk A New Standard Of Beauty'
632 Words | 3 PagesWomen are raised to prize being beautiful, but, contrary to what pop culture may promote, is never completely effortless. Becoming beautiful in the way that society defines it often requires hair dying, eyebrow plucking, trend following, makeup applying, leg shaving, and hours and hours and hours in the gym. Thus, in the words of Alisa L. Valdes in her "Ruminations of a Feminist Fitness Instructor," beauty standards serve to reinforce power relations in that they "distract us from the real business of our lives. " That is to say that is women were to spend the time and energy they currently devote to beautification on endeavors they considered to be meaningful, whether they be professional, educational, or personal, the men of the world would have one less advantage over their female counterparts. Therefore, one way beauty norms support existing power relationships is demanding valuable time from women in the name of
Summary Of In Defense Of Fat Acceptance By Mary Worley
836 Words | 4 PagesMary Ray Worley, member of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA), author of “Fat and Happy: In Defense of Fat Acceptance,” represents the fat community to convey the biases they feel on a daily basis. She argues that everyone should embrace their size and love themselves for who they are, not the weight they carry. Worley’s article is highlighted by her use of diction, logical fallacies, and her constant relation to her personal life. However, with the excessive use of some of these techniques, she begins to create a divide in her audience between those who are overweight and the rest of the readers. To begin, Worley contends that today’s society is too negative and judgemental when it comes to overweight people.
Fat Shaming In Peter And Bobby Farrelly's Shallow
1099 Words | 5 PagesFat shaming is the act of putting down or believing that one is better than another because of their weight. Although this may seem like bullying at a glance, in reality, fat shaming is a real epidemic that must come to an end. As time goes by, beauty becomes more and more programmed than being perception; however, Peter and Bobby Farrelly’s Shallow Hal calls for both Americans and people worldwide to end fat shaming by showing how one little change in perspective can show the beauty in everyone Near the beginning of the movie, Hal Larson’s shallow trademark is exhibited when one of his coworkers asks, “lt never occurred to you that picking girls on their looks may not be the best way [to find a girlfriend]?”
Marie's Struggle With Gender Roles
995 Words | 4 PagesBeauty and the tears from her body are both capable of being commandeered by societal pressures, exemplified in the priest’s ridicule. In her article "Disturbances In The Social Body: Differences in Body Image and Eating Problems among African American and White Women." Meg Lovejoy comments that “the body is a form or surface on which the central rules, hierarchies, and commitments of a culture are inscribed” (Lovejoy 239). By removing and covering aspects of her body out of sight of societal hierarchies, Marie is protecting her body and rewriting a bodily text that conforms to the patriarchy’s structuralist
A Bridge To Wiseman's Cove Analysis
937 Words | 4 PagesThis common issue of body image is expressed in the following quote: “He wore a t-shirt as a paltry use against public humiliation” Maloney has used a metaphor to imply that Carl is worried that people will judge the way he is shaped. The author has expressed that Carl is very self-conscious about his body, while feeling embarrassed and ashamed of his reflection. The ongoing concern of body image negatively impacts many teenagers, increasing their discomfort and self-awareness. Since this issue has converted into a huge deal, teenagers are struggling to fit in with other people, and are excessively preoccupied with their image. Maloney’s use of figurative language to portray Carl’s experiences, illuminates the issue of body image facing teenagers today.
Real Women Have Curves: Unrealistic Beauty Standards Vs. POC Communities
1627 Words | 7 PagesGianna Constantine Ernest Stromberg HCOM 452 05/15/2023 Real Women Have Curves: Unrealistic Beauty Standards vs. POC Communities Eurocentric norms have traditionally molded beauty standards, frequently excluding POC and fostering a sense of inferiority and marginalization. In Josefina López's play, Real Women Have Curves, the effect of Eurocentric beauty standards on POC communities is eloquently portrayed. The drama exposes the negative impact of these ideals on physical image, self-esteem, and cultural identity through the experiences of the characters. This essay will examine the play's exposure to the widespread effects of Eurocentric beauty ideals by examining the problems of the characters, the cultural setting, and the play's broader
The Husband Stitch By Carmen Maria Machado
971 Words | 4 PagesThis idea supports gender-based oppression by perpetuating the notion that women's bodies are not their own, and that men should have the right to control and manipulate women to satisfy their wants. The comment that 'everyone's happy' suggests the societal expectation for the narrator to conform to a standard of physical attractiveness and sexual appeal, regardless of her own opinions or preferences. Thus, the comment showcases gender based oppression by bringing to attention the idea that women's bodies are objects to be controlled and manipulated by men, and that societal expectations of physical appearance and sexual behavior should take
Pretty Hurts Analysis Essay
857 Words | 4 PagesOn the surface, the song “Pretty Hurts” is about a pageant girl who comes to terms with her insecurities and learns to accept her natural beauty; however, when one looks deeper, the audience understands that the speaker is criticizing society’s beauty standards and its effect on young women. This message is shown through the author’s use of various rhetorical devices including diction, metaphors and
Summary Of Fat Is Not A Fairytale By Jane Yolen
575 Words | 3 PagesIn today’s media, being skinny has always been the ideal beauty standard. This author fought against it by showing how being fat is pretty too. The poem “Fat is Not a Fairytale” by Jane Yolen talks about the acceptance of being fat and the media’s negative outlook on it. The poem describes the wish of wanting positive fat representation rather than anorexic, life threatening waists that are considered “pretty” to media’s standards.
Imagery In The Handmaid's Tale
836 Words | 4 PagesShe describes her body with imperfect diction, such as “strange”, “outdated”, “shameful”, and “immodest” (82). Atwood has such a critical tone towards body image to expose the high standard of beauty and how the standard forces people to feel about their own body. Such image of oneself compared to the standard allows people to feel imperfect and incompetent and prohibits beauty to surface. Atwood uses parallelism in “without thought...without care” (82) to emphasize the past’s carelessness of exposure. Atwood compares the past’s exposure to the present’s concealment to differentiate the effects of each.
Persuasive Essay On The Barbie Doll
1108 Words | 5 PagesYour decisions to comply with society’s view of “beauty” are no longer subconscious, but rather are more conscious-driven decisions. Barbie’s slender figure remains idolized; however, it has evolved from a plastic doll to a self-starving model that is photo-shopped on the pages of glossy magazines. You spend hours in front of a mirror adjusting and perfecting your robotic look while demanding your parents to spend an endless amount of money on cosmetics and harmful skin products to acquire a temporary version of beauty. Consider companies such as Maybelline, which have throughout the ages created problematic and infantilizing campaigns and products for women. More specifically consider the “Baby Lips” product as well as the company slogan, “maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s Maybelline,” that reiterates the male notions of beauty to which women are subjected.
When The Fat Girl Gets Skinny Analysis
806 Words | 4 PagesThe purpose of this is to set an example to her audience of how she struggled and how she achieved happiness without having to harm herself. It is evident, individuals develop traumas at a young age due to the ideas being harvested by society, for instance, “By the time I was sixteen, I had already experienced being clinically overweight, underweight and obese,”(17-18) this helps the audience understand that these ideas not only traumatize a child but compels a child to feel the necessity of achieving ideal features at a young age. It is evident that for a child to be considered “... overweight, underweight, and obese...” by the age of sixteen is not healthy. Blaid explains how as a child she wasn’t affected by being called fact, until she understood what it truly meant.
Argumentative Essay On Body Shaming
729 Words | 3 PagesBody shaming is one of the biggest problems in today’s generation. It is the practice of making critical, potentially humiliating comments about a person’s body, size or weight. It is obvious that all of us come in different shapes and sizes but society and the media puts a lot of pressure on us with beauty stereotypes and standards to deem some as healthy and some not. Recently, there has been a lot of controversy recently about body image and body shaming, especially among teenagers. Body shaming is an extremely personal concept and can take a negative toll on a person.
More about Fat Girl Gets Skinny
1984 Rhetorical Analysis
1776 Words | 8 PagesFigurative Language In Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson
875 Words | 4 PagesAmber Starks 'TED Talk A New Standard Of Beauty'
632 Words | 3 PagesSummary Of In Defense Of Fat Acceptance By Mary Worley
836 Words | 4 PagesFat Shaming In Peter And Bobby Farrelly's Shallow
1099 Words | 5 PagesMarie's Struggle With Gender Roles
995 Words | 4 PagesA Bridge To Wiseman's Cove Analysis
937 Words | 4 PagesReal Women Have Curves: Unrealistic Beauty Standards Vs. POC Communities
1627 Words | 7 PagesThe Husband Stitch By Carmen Maria Machado
971 Words | 4 PagesPretty Hurts Analysis Essay
857 Words | 4 PagesSummary Of Fat Is Not A Fairytale By Jane Yolen
575 Words | 3 PagesImagery In The Handmaid's Tale
836 Words | 4 PagesPersuasive Essay On The Barbie Doll
1108 Words | 5 PagesWhen The Fat Girl Gets Skinny Analysis
806 Words | 4 PagesArgumentative Essay On Body Shaming
729 Words | 3 Pages