Body image and changing the world
Nov. 16th, 2005 09:28 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sarahmichiganFrom the latest body_impolitic post, about body image obsession hitting children at younger and younger ages:
All of these newer, better, stronger sources of body hatred (more from parents, more from TV set, and more from school than ever before!) add a huge new dimension to the role of beauty obsession in political life. It's a basic truth of feminism that the time and energy you spend making yourself "acceptable" in looks and appearance (or beating yourself up because you're not) is time you can't spend on activism, changing the world, or improving your own real conditions. Increasing the size of the group that spends its time and energy this way limits even further the power of activism. Men, who already have to fit themselves into a horrendously narrow channel to be "real men," now also spend more time on bodies, attractiveness, and muscle-building. Children and teenagers (and tweens!) of all genders who are brought up to obsess about their bodies from age six (or whatever age) will have to do a lot more work on themselves if they're going to get away from that trap and into any path that will actually make them happier, let alone effect any social change.
full text here:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/body_impolitic/20433.html
All of these newer, better, stronger sources of body hatred (more from parents, more from TV set, and more from school than ever before!) add a huge new dimension to the role of beauty obsession in political life. It's a basic truth of feminism that the time and energy you spend making yourself "acceptable" in looks and appearance (or beating yourself up because you're not) is time you can't spend on activism, changing the world, or improving your own real conditions. Increasing the size of the group that spends its time and energy this way limits even further the power of activism. Men, who already have to fit themselves into a horrendously narrow channel to be "real men," now also spend more time on bodies, attractiveness, and muscle-building. Children and teenagers (and tweens!) of all genders who are brought up to obsess about their bodies from age six (or whatever age) will have to do a lot more work on themselves if they're going to get away from that trap and into any path that will actually make them happier, let alone effect any social change.
full text here:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/body_impolitic/20433.html
