Challenging Womanhood
Stretching her arms as she gets up from bed, she walks to the mirror and glances at herself. She is aware that her hips are far wider than the ones in magazines and TV shows, but she does not seem to mind. Twisting her body from side to side, she would not desire to change a single aspect about herself. “I am a woman,” she says to herself. “That alone makes me very powerful.” In the article “Fat Is a Feminist Issue,” Susie Orbach claims that obesity is a symbol for rebellion, women are held to the standard as mothers and wives, and there is an emphasis on how women present themselves. I disagree that being overweight isolates and invalidates a woman, but I agree that there is a relegation on women and that there is a huge emphasis on a woman’s presentation.
In the article “Fat Is a Feminist Issue,” Susie Orbach analyzes how being overweight challenges the standards of society, and, therefore, obesity is intentional. She believes that obesity in women is a symbol of rebellion. She backs up conclusion by firstly showing how a female must care about her appearance to attract men; secondly how that can lead the woman to obsess over the standards in society; and thirdly how such vicious cycle ultimately has no end due to the constant changes in the beauty industry. The never-ending trends of being “long and skinny one year, petite and demure the next” is due to society’s unfair expectations (451). Therefore, when a woman refuses to stand up to these standards, she inevitably challenges society’s inequality. Ultimately, what Orbach is trying to convey is that there is a significant correlation between inequality between obese people and women.
No matter what shape or size, women should be able to look at the mirror and feel beautiful. Although Orbach says that “being fat isolates and invalidates a woman” (449), I disagree with her point. By saying this, she means that women are failing themselves when it comes to maintaining and controlling their weight and eating habits. I agree with Orbach in the sense that women are responsible for their eating habits and weight management, but Orbach is wrong when she says that a bigger woman is separated from society. Just because one woman is curvier than another does not mean that she is any less of a woman or that she should be isolated from other women. However, bigger women are most definitely not isolated from society. Even though they are bothersome to society, they still wear short shorts, and yes, even though finding clothes their size is more challenging, they still manage to rock whatever they desire to wear.
I believe that the way women are portrayed and view themselves is directly related to the issue of women’s obesity. Orbach states, “The relegation of women to the social roles of wife and mother has several significant consequences that contribute to the problem of fat” (450). Women have always been harder to be seen or heard since they have been expected to be in the kitchen, raise children, and remain a pretty object for a man to own. She follows this by saying that she must first have a man, but to do this she must think of herself as “an item, a commodity, a sex object” (450). I agree with Orbach in this aspect. Women in the media and advertising are almost always portrayed in a sexual way, making it harder for the typical woman to be noticed. Men see these media images and advertisements and expects that from a woman. Women see these advertisements and various media images inevitably compare themselves to the women they are seeing. Not only that, but women feel as though they have to live up to these images since that is also what men are expecting from them.
I also agree that the way a woman presents herself has to do with her weight and eating habits. Orbach writes, “The emphasis on presentation as the central aspect of a woman’s existence makes her extremely self-conscious” (450). Basically, Orbach is saying that women must spend their time getting ready in the morning or the evening, not trying to look good for themselves, but to look pleasing and well-put-together to others. This image she creates is how others will see her and how others will portray what kind of woman she is. If a woman just throws her hair up into a ponytail or messy bun, puts on a pair of sweats and a hoodie and leaves the house without putting on makeup, others will look at her appearance and assume that she is lazy. Whereas, if a woman takes the time to do her hair and her makeup and dress nicely, people will look at her and assume that she qualify for society’s standards.
In Susie Orbach’s article “Fat Is a Feminist Issue,”women automatically cause rebellion when they do not conform to society’s expectations. Although saying that obesity segregates women from society's qualifications of womanhood is false, Orbach makes a great point that women are currently obsessing over the unrealistic expectations, making them to never fit their standards. As she stands in front of the mirror and removes her makeup, she wraps her hair on top of her head. She stands there twisting her body and admiring her curves. “I am a woman,” she says to herself. “That alone makes me very powerful.”
In the article “Fat Is a Feminist Issue,” Susie Orbach analyzes how being overweight challenges the standards of society, and, therefore, obesity is intentional. She believes that obesity in women is a symbol of rebellion. She backs up conclusion by firstly showing how a female must care about her appearance to attract men; secondly how that can lead the woman to obsess over the standards in society; and thirdly how such vicious cycle ultimately has no end due to the constant changes in the beauty industry. The never-ending trends of being “long and skinny one year, petite and demure the next” is due to society’s unfair expectations (451). Therefore, when a woman refuses to stand up to these standards, she inevitably challenges society’s inequality. Ultimately, what Orbach is trying to convey is that there is a significant correlation between inequality between obese people and women.
No matter what shape or size, women should be able to look at the mirror and feel beautiful. Although Orbach says that “being fat isolates and invalidates a woman” (449), I disagree with her point. By saying this, she means that women are failing themselves when it comes to maintaining and controlling their weight and eating habits. I agree with Orbach in the sense that women are responsible for their eating habits and weight management, but Orbach is wrong when she says that a bigger woman is separated from society. Just because one woman is curvier than another does not mean that she is any less of a woman or that she should be isolated from other women. However, bigger women are most definitely not isolated from society. Even though they are bothersome to society, they still wear short shorts, and yes, even though finding clothes their size is more challenging, they still manage to rock whatever they desire to wear.
I believe that the way women are portrayed and view themselves is directly related to the issue of women’s obesity. Orbach states, “The relegation of women to the social roles of wife and mother has several significant consequences that contribute to the problem of fat” (450). Women have always been harder to be seen or heard since they have been expected to be in the kitchen, raise children, and remain a pretty object for a man to own. She follows this by saying that she must first have a man, but to do this she must think of herself as “an item, a commodity, a sex object” (450). I agree with Orbach in this aspect. Women in the media and advertising are almost always portrayed in a sexual way, making it harder for the typical woman to be noticed. Men see these media images and advertisements and expects that from a woman. Women see these advertisements and various media images inevitably compare themselves to the women they are seeing. Not only that, but women feel as though they have to live up to these images since that is also what men are expecting from them.
I also agree that the way a woman presents herself has to do with her weight and eating habits. Orbach writes, “The emphasis on presentation as the central aspect of a woman’s existence makes her extremely self-conscious” (450). Basically, Orbach is saying that women must spend their time getting ready in the morning or the evening, not trying to look good for themselves, but to look pleasing and well-put-together to others. This image she creates is how others will see her and how others will portray what kind of woman she is. If a woman just throws her hair up into a ponytail or messy bun, puts on a pair of sweats and a hoodie and leaves the house without putting on makeup, others will look at her appearance and assume that she is lazy. Whereas, if a woman takes the time to do her hair and her makeup and dress nicely, people will look at her and assume that she qualify for society’s standards.
In Susie Orbach’s article “Fat Is a Feminist Issue,”women automatically cause rebellion when they do not conform to society’s expectations. Although saying that obesity segregates women from society's qualifications of womanhood is false, Orbach makes a great point that women are currently obsessing over the unrealistic expectations, making them to never fit their standards. As she stands in front of the mirror and removes her makeup, she wraps her hair on top of her head. She stands there twisting her body and admiring her curves. “I am a woman,” she says to herself. “That alone makes me very powerful.”
Works Cited
Orbach, Susie. "Fat Is a Feminist Issue." They Say I Say With Readings. By Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein. Ed.
Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012. 448-453. Print.
Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012. 448-453. Print.