Thanks to the COM352 students for contributing a bunch of new pages! I'll be moving these pages into the main area of the wiki soon.

From UMassWiki

There is and always has been an imbalance between males and females within the American society. Women have always been viewed as the “smaller” of the two genders; on television and in ads, they are the sex that takes care of the house and chores. Although many of these stereotypes are not as intense anymore, society today still thinks of women as fitting a certain mold. In order to be the “perfect” woman, a woman’s body type must be small and skinny. Men on the other hand, should eat a lot and look macho. As shown in Susan Bordo’s essay, “Hunger as Ideology,” women have been expected to eat less than men according to many advertisements in the past and present. Bordo takes the position of a teacher informing others that the media gives off false information. She lets her audience, both women and men of the American society know what information is accurate so that women can become healthier. In a sense, Bordo is a role model because she is aware that a majority of America listens to what the media and other sources suggest.

I thoroughly agree with her essay because by being a woman in this society, we know about this information first hand. Growing up as a girl in this country is difficult because there are always people telling us that the slender looking girls are the prettiest. Bordo relates her personal experiences as a teen to the argument, women are forced to eat in small proportions. As a teen, I have come across encounters of the media and other sources affecting the way girls think about themselves and Bordo does a good job arguing the point. Bordo identifies herself as being against the idea that women are “supposed” to act a certain way. She is a level-headed woman in a society that is lopsided. Bordo is stressing the idea that the media is influencing this society in a negative way and she is trying to persuade Americans to stay healthy and not listen to the idea advertisements and commercials are trying to sell.

Susan Bordo uses certain tactics in her classes to make women and men aware of what society is trying to make them believe. She lets us know that there are ads that in some way show women eating less than men and fitting a certain description. “I encourage my students to bring in examples that appear to violate traditional gender dualities and ideological messages contained in them.” (pg. 194) This is a good method because it forces women to find images that we can relate to, instead of the impossible model image. I experienced this tactic when I was in a middle school health class. I was unaware of the situation with the media and when my health teacher gave my class an assignment that consisted of every student bringing in what we thought the ideal woman or man looked like, everyone brought in a picture of their favorite celebrity. Not only was it a celebrity, but most of them consisted of Jennifer Anniston, Jessica Simpson, Brad Pitt, or Derek Jeter. Each of these people has a fit body and good looks. This proved that even at such a young age we were affected by the image that society created.

Another reason why I agree with what Bordo is arguing is because she has proof to show that she was once influenced when she was growing up as a teenager, as well. Such advertisements like cigarettes, Virginia Slims, and make-up, try to con young women into looking slim and pretty. “When I was a teenager in the 1960s, Twiggy’s mascara-spiked star and long, spindly legs represented our variant of the wide-eyed waif. We envied Twiggy’s casual cool and elegantly elongated body.” (pg. 192) “Twiggy” subtly informs that being skinny is elegant; the fact that she was actually slim makes Bordo’s argument stronger. It gives her credibility because it proves that she can relate fully to what is still going on in society. Bordo took part in the problem of women being characterized in a certain way firsthand.

At the same time, men are being persuaded to eat a lot and be big, manly men. Although not the main focus of Bordo’s essay, men also have pressures just like those of girls. The pressures men have, however are to be large and strong. In advertisements and on television, men are usually shown to eat big, hefty meals and to be muscular. In advertisements that Bordo uses as examples such as, “Hungry Man Dinners” and “Manwiches,” men are being targeted. Also, in major motion pictures such as The Terminator and Rocky, the view of a powerful man is to have a built figure. Even though Bordo’s essay stresses the struggles of women, she does show some concern about the men and that both genders are affected by society.

The problem with advertisements still occurs in the media today, but there are also a lot of issues with the imbalance of males and females in Hollywood. Pop culture today is a bad influence for growing teens. There is a lot of corruption in this industry that leads women to search for a new look. Agents in the music business look for certain aspects of women when they sign record deals. An example of this is shown in American Idol on Fox. These judges, even though they look for the best voice, will also turn a woman down if they do not have the “right look.” This is also true for men although it is not as strict. They usually look for the spunky, skinny girl that can move around quick and look good at the same time. It is a very unfortunate situation, however it is reality.

To further prove her point on the persuasion of Hollywood and the affects it has on women today, Bordo explains that she has encountered women with eating disorders who have looked to Hollywood for inspiration. “Women with eating disorders bring photos of…Kate Moss.” (pg 192) Kate Moss has an almost impossible body type which probably did not form in a healthy way. Viewers look at her on the covers of the most popular magazines and see that she is an icon in the modeling business and that men think she is attractive. Most women will turn to her and base their aspiring appearance on a body that is almost not attainable. This is where society begins to “force” women to become unhealthy.

As stated before, Bordo, like most women in America, did seem affected by the media and various advertisements growing up. I can personally relate to her argument and further try to prove that it is accurate. I grew up with a friend who was slightly overweight. She was self-conscious of the way she looked and never would wear bathing suits in the summer. Throughout high school she would compare herself to me and others as well as magazines and television shows. She would look at actresses such as the Olsen twins and become depressed. She began to eat less and eventually this led to a minor eating disorder. While my friend was at this stage in her life, it was a scary time for many people who cared for her and after quite a struggle and help from her friends, she recovered. She tells me now that she was stressed out by the amount of pressure she had in high school to be petite. Boys would look at her as just a “friend” and nothing else. She was also pushed to be a certain way and she could not handle it any longer. This experience with my friend brings me further to believe that Bordo’s argument of the imbalance of women and men in food advertisements is true. “In 1990, women students of mine complain of the tortures of the cafeteria, the embarrassment of eating ice cream in front of the male students, the pressure to just take a salad, or, better yet, refuse food altogether.” This statement is evidence that has been researched to prove that women are being affected by what they have been told through the media. This is an issue that has been occurring for many years and because women are told to eat less than men, it is leading to unhealthy situations. If we lived in a society with not as much pressure from product advertisements, this situation would have never occurred. This is what Bordo is trying to stop. She is trying to persuade young people to be healthy and not listen to what commercials say or show.

There are many issues that need to be dealt with in the American society, whether being a male or a female. Bordo targets the problems that women face everyday. She shows a major concern for women today and in the past and argues that the media and historical context is the main reason that women think the way they do. Most of her argument is designed to appeal to women, however I think that men would have some concern in the way that the media works to convince people to think a certain way. I strongly agree with what Bordo argues and think that “Hunger as Ideology” is an accurate essay.