Judith Butler Beside Oneself Analysis

We live in a world in which our society influences our everyday routine, behaviors, actions and how we see ourselves. In the article Beside Oneself: On the Limits of Sexual Autonomy by Judith Butler talks about how our society can influence us to make us feel threatened affecting our lives. Our body, for instance, is one of our most criticized possessions in this society which, becomes critical when it begins to affect individuals, making them feel unsure or criticized. Politics take a crucial, part in this because politics like to control us and decide what they want us to do. As a result, it begins to dominate our decisions as to what we think the norms are. Every individual can easily be influenced to think a certain way creating an effect

I, for instance, always assumed it should be the people that decide what they want to do with their body. Butler points out how “to be a body is to be given over to the others even as a body is, emphatically, one`s own” (Butler 116). Which makes sense, because your body is part of your “physical appearance” making it the first thing people see. For instance, a woman who skinny, has curves, a bit of muscle and has a “thigh gap” is put into the category as someone who is “fit” and has the “perfect body”. Now if you’re a guy the “perfect body” is someone who has arms muscle as well as abdomen muscle. These physical appearances create a society that makes other individuals feel like they should have that body too. Having these physical characteristics allows individuals to exist in a community however it can also make someone feel insecure about their body. Butler describes how “[our] body is and is not [ours]” (Butler 117). Meaning that yes it is our body but at the same time, it isn’t because it's controversial to what our body should look like. This relates to the “perfect body” because someone who is overweight is criticized as someone who eats unhealthy and doesn’t exercise. As a result, they are put on a label like obese because they see that many people are skinny so they expect or want everyone else to look the same affecting the way they see themselves and making them think maybe I should look that way. Then again, where does our society get these