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Impact of social media on body image
The influence of media in society
The influence of media in society
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Zaikina 3
I would like to go back in history of fashion and ideal body. In 1890 Charles Dana Gibson illustrated a female with the ideal physical appeal and later this picture became an ideal body or so called a ”Gibson Girl.” This model of ideal femininity was depicted as slim, tall and with wide hips. This look could be achieved by wearing tight corsets which would pinch waist. Such girls were perceived as healthy and active people. Another important time in picturing a good looking female is “Roaring Twenties.” The idea of women was presented more real as “Gibson girls.” They were often labelled as independent and reckless. They represent a refusal of accepting Victorian style. Their appearance could be compared to “boyishness” style: a
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In mainstream media the most beautiful are rail thin, long hair and perfect skin. If one is pleasing the eye, one is acceptable in society. Media is responsible for creating ideals about beauty and body image. Low self-esteem is one of the negative psychological effects that media does not take into a consideration when publishing. Media continues to depict models and celebrities throughout advertising in brand such as Abercrombie and Fitch and Victoria’s Secret. They want society to think of what is going on as a “trend.” Women watch celebrities and tend to follow their habits because they want to be like them. Women also continue to compare themselves to figures in the media. Actresses, singers, and models always seem to be perfect, and when women can’t achieve that, they begin to bash their bodies. In the article: “Am I too fat to be a princess? Examining the effect of popular children’s media on young girls’ body image,” the study was to examine the effects of exposure to popular animated children’s media in young girl’s body image and appearance-related behaviors. Those in the experiment were shown a video containing appearance-related clips from 10 animated children’s movies. The children also went through an interview where they were asked questions about their appearances satisfaction. The majority said they would change something about their physical appearance, hair, skin etc. almost all of them said that they could be a princess regardless their weight. Here are some examples of their response: “I’d need yellow hair”, “I’d paint myself white”, “I’d change from brown skin to white.”
While beauty pageants, Barbie, and icons such as Marilyn Monroe present a more provocative and sexual image than standard 1950s sitcoms, such as Leave It to Beaver or I Love Lucy, they do still fit into a prescribed gender stereotype. Most significantly, do not challenge the overarching notion that women are to be feminine and aim to sexually please males (Meyerowitz 16). Rather, they present and support the culturally-defined understanding of the ideal woman, physically. 1950s beauty pageant contestants, Barbie, and Marilyn Monroe all embodied the ‘perfect women.’ These women, icons, and toys were voluptuous, but petite. They were small in frame, had larger breasts, full hips, and a tiny waist. Their hair was done in a very feminine style
Showing off your body was the new trend of the ‘20s. Flappers of the 1920 era started wearing shorter dresses and sleeveless tops to seem keener. Before the 1920’s, it was rare for women to even show their ankles let alone their knees. Not only did women start to wear “skimpier” clothing, but they also garnished themselves with accessories. It was all about that bling. Girls were obsessed with pearls, diamonds, and just about anything that looked expensive. They hated cheap dull accessories and wanted the real McCoy. Clothing was not the only change during this time. The way women did their hair and makeup changed. Flappers started wearing a lot of makeup and styling their hair differently. “Flappers raised their hemlines, bobbed their hair, and applied make up with abandon.” (Armburst, Lloyd) No one wanted to be considered a bug-eyed Betty, and they did whatever it took to make themselves more alluring. This new style of women was the bee’s
... However, it stands to reason that while the existence of such weighty components has reduced greatly, their concepts have set an indisputable model that remains relevant and continues to influence today’s fashion. In conclusion, it is significant to recognize the revolution of the female silhouette throughout history along with women’s roles in today’s society and also, the physical restrictions imposed on them. The silhouette of women’s fashion has changed as the idea of the perfect female figure has reformed. Nevertheless, in the early twentieth century the concept of women leading more active and lively life meant that fashion also needed to become more cooperative to physical action and less limiting.
The media and how it affects our society has changed tremendously over the past few decades. Our population of children who spend a lot of time in front of the television or on social media continues to increase, creating a superficial view of themselves and who they should be. This superficial outlook has been created by the media because it preaches to our society that looks matter. Not only are there millions of advertisements saying to lose weight and buy certain products to be beautiful, but there has been a specific standard of beauty set for models and actresses to obtain. These standards include big eyes, volumino...
It seems if a woman does not follow what the television or magazines do, they will be considered a ‘disgrace’ to society. “By the 1930’s, mass advertisements on radio and in magazines persuaded women to purchase cosmetic products by appealing to her fear of growing old or being rejected by social acquaintances,” (Gourley 56). The beauty industry specifically targeted women, using the ideas of an often highly feminine related idea of vanity. This also talked about women’s apparel in clothing and how they weren’t able to dress casually since they would be titled, slob. As looks represent a lot in a woman, the body type of a woman has always struggled with maintaining since the ‘perfect’ body types are not what everyone has. “In the 1890’s women had full bosoms, round hips. In actual measurements they were probably no rounder than Miss Cox but they seemed so because they were shorter, tightened their waists into an hour-glass effect … Now, though, the ideal figure must have a round, high bosom, a slim but not wasp-like waist, and gently rounded hips” (“This is What…”). Ideals women that society has pushed onto women to be for them to have any chance in romance. Though many women can drift away from this the women, though they won’t admit to it, had struggled to meet the ‘set standard’ for women. This shows how after women have gained the rights of voting, gender roles
Throughout history, the female form has always been a prevalent source of artistic muse. The introduction of the modern photographic camera allowed the objectification of women to increase exponentially. In today’s society, women of all ages struggle to exemplify what is perceived as the ideal female form. Studies show that women – beginning in their mid-teen years – experience a steady degeneration of self-esteem relative to the level of dissatisfaction with their internal body image. The decline of self-image in women can be directly linked to several contributing factors including: film and print advertising, social media, and the early exposure of adolescent girls to overly-sexualized products and media.
Media is infamous for having a tremendous effect on teenage girls. The mass media have long been criticized for presenting unrealistic appearance ideals that contribute to the development of negative body image for many women and girls (Harrison & Hefner, 2006). Whether it’s the influence on their choice of friends, school, or their self image, media has played an important role in affecting those decisions. A growing number of experimental studies have demonstrated a causal link between acute exposure to "thin-ideal" images (i.e., images of impossibly thin and attractive female beauty) and increased body dissatisfaction (Hargreaves & Tiggemann, 2003). It has recently been brought up that media influences girls in preadolescence, which is highly likely since most young girls idolize Barbie (Rintala & Mustajoki, 1992). “Were Barbie a flesh-and-blood woman, her waist would be 39% smaller than that of anorexic patients, and her body weight would be so low that she would not be able to menstruate” (Rintala & Mustajoki, 1992). Most young girls wish that they could look like Barbie when they grew up, but if they knew the reality of having her measurements their perceptions would probably change. Children frequently fantasize about who they will be, what they will do, and how they will look when they grow into adulthood.
In recent years, sociologists, psychologists, and medical experts have gone to great lengths about the growing problem of body image. This literature review examines the sociological impact of media-induced body image on women, specifically women under the age of 18. Although most individuals make light of the ideal body image most will agree that today’s pop-culture is inherently hurting the youth by representing false images and unhealthy habits. The paper compares the media-induced ideal body image with significant role models of today’s youth and the surrounding historical icons of pop-culture while exploring various sociological perspectives surrounding this issue.
In “Little Girls or Little Women? The Disney Princess Effect,” Stephanie Hanes covers the sexualization of young girls and women in every aspect of the media that influences children and teens. She explains that girls see media figures, movies, and sports being sexualized, and how this is causing children to associate looking and acting a certain way to being ‘the perfect women’. Hanes believes the hypersexualized media is causing girls to obtain a negative body image and it’s killing their self-esteem. The author proposes what she believes society should do about overcoming this obstacle, and how people can crush the stereotypes about women; to her everyone is responsible and should aid in fixing these problems. She explains that the media
Models of Rubens, Rembrandt, Gaugin and Matisse were all rounded, plump women.A plump and healthy women was admired as it reflected wealth and success.(14). Where as images of women have become slimmer since the 1950’s according to Jennifer A. (Australian journal of nutrition and dietetics).
The Gibson Girl made a huge impact on American culture by creating a gauge by which beauty could be understood and measured. By creating a consumable, mass-produced vision of how American women should look, the Gibson Girl shaped American perceptions of beauty. During the Victorian Era, the hourglass silhouette that featured ample curves was the most popular figure. On the other hand, the Gibson Girl popularized the S curve figure that became in vogue during the
In this age, media is more pervasive than ever, with people constantly processing some form of entertainment, advertisement or information. In each of these outlets there exists an idealized standard of beauty, statistically shown to effect the consumer’s reflection of themselves. The common portrayal of women’s bodies in the media has shown to have a negative impact on women and girls. As the audience sees these images, an expectation is made of what is normal. This norm does not correspond to the realistic average of the audience. Failing to achieve this isolates the individual, and is particularly psychologically harmful to women. Though men are also shown to also be effected negatively by low self-esteem from the media, there remains a gap as the value of appearance is seen of greater significance to women, with a booming cosmetic industry, majority of the fashion world, and the marketing of diet products and programs specifically targeting women.
The media’s way of portraying a woman can be skewed and unrealistic from what reality is. Teenage girls then have a desire for this look or style. In this essay, the three ways I will describe as to why the media can negatively affect a teenage girls body image is by showing unrealistic bodies and women, women whose bodies are desirable by a mass number of people, and lastly not allowing all body types to be equally shown as “attractive.” The pattern is similar for the portrayal of women on television, magazines, and other parts of the media. The way media represents women is for them to be thin-like models and other women on television to be the high standard of “attractiveness” to others.
Research suggests that experimental exposures to the thin ideal in television commercials was correlated with lower body satisfaction in females (Levine & Murnen, 2009; Slevec & Tiggemann, 2011). Girls were also found to have higher food consumption after playing with an averaged-sized doll compared to girls who played with a thin Barbie doll, and researchers propose that more realistic dolls may have reduced the pressure of feeling the need for restrictive diets (Anschutz & Engels, 2010). Studies examining the impact of Disney movies on young children indicate similar findings. Kindergarten girls who were exposed to Disney movies with female themes reported significantly lower body image satisfaction than the children exposed to Disney movies with nonhuman themes (Asawarachan, 2014). However, Hayes and Tantleff-Dunn’s (2010) findings report that girls ages 5-6 years old selected a thinner ideal self after Disney movie exposure, while children ages 3-4 did not, suggesting that there may be a relationship between developmental shifts and changes in body
In recent times, the world’s view on woman is very unhealthy. Women portrayed on magazines and TV shows are thin, beautiful, and are always covered in perfect makeup and styled hair. Runway models are known to have ribs showing and look like they’ve starved themselves for days just to hold their job and to look beautiful. Women activist are actively protesting the use of dieting models or photo shopping a women’s body so that it looks good for the viewer’s eye. But when we show the younger generation Disney princess movies, what it shows is that thin, young beautiful girls is what women should look like. If someone who isn’t exactly like that, is ultimately judged as being ugly. Disney has eroded the self-esteem and confidence of young females. “Today, the average American woman above the age of 20 is 5'4" tall and weighs 166 pounds, according to the CDC. By comparison, the average Canadian woman is the same height, but weighs 145 pounds, and the average British woman is shorter at 5'3" and weighs 155 pounds.” (Sun, Is it Time) As for Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Elsa, or Rapunzel, their body types are so much different and hardly represent the average woman. These princesses have large heads with large ...