When I was planning how to take this photograph there were
several elements that I wanted to capture to convey the feeling of shame,
depression, and anxiety that women feel when trying to measure up to other
women as portrayed in the media. The first element that I incorporated was the
camera angle of the photo. The angle was facing downward showing how the
subject feels small or insignificant. Next I desaturated the color from the
photo to make it feel drained of life or vibrancy. The clothing and magazines
strewn about the room represent her own personal chaos and loss of control in
her life. The magazines also represent the unrealistic body standards set for
women in the media. The woman also is positioned in a withdrawn manner with her
knees pulled into her chest and her head into her knees, signifying that she is
trying to take up as little room as possible.
In the textbook “The Social Psychology of Gender”, M.R.
Jackman is quoted as saying “Women the world over are pushed toward impossibly
high standards of beauty and receive strong cultural messages that their bodies
are unacceptable as they are, thus promoting a variety of body-altering
practices.” (Rudman and Glick, 2008) The subject in the photo feels inadequate
because she is comparing her body to the unrealistic standards of models in
magazines. It is implied that the woman in the photo has purged her food to
alter herself to meet her ideal body image.
Women throughout time have used extreme measures to fit the
ideal body standard of their time through different means. Some examples of
this are corsets, pushup bras, waist trainers, foot binding, plastic surgery,
and high heels. (Rudman and Glick, 2008) All of these measures are extremely
unnatural and painful, and it is all just to fit into these body types.
“Compared with men, they develop a more negative body image, like their bodies
less, and suffer more body shame.” (Feingold and Mazella, 1998)
Works Cited
Rudman, Laurie A. and Peter Glick. The Social
Psychology of Gender. New york: The Guilford Press, 2008.
1 comment:
from lucy:
When first looking at this picture, I saw a sad girl with magazines surrounding her. These magazines were very related to girl/beauty magazines. The girls you can see on the pages are very clearly an unhealthy weight that is just not a normal standard today. It’s just the standard the media puts out for others to look up to. The girls hands on her head in look off disappointment shows her self consciousness. The toilet being opened and the seat up shows her maybe wanting to make herself throw up because she feels ashamed of her weight. Many girls result in anorexia and other diseases to try and fit this standards society places on them. It is very dangerous to peoples health. Then as you look closer into the photo, i don't know if this was intended or not but the big tree/nature picture on the shower curtain could represent freedom. This girl just wants to free herself from all of these beauty standards and be able to just breathe and i think the trend nature represent fresh air and freedom of being who you are. The framing of the photo makes it seem as if the girl is just one little part of the huge issue surrounding her. It also looks as thought she is sitting under the tree if this were a real picture in the outdoors and when you picture that, you picture a happier girl with brighter colors.
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