I stumbled across a post on Facebook this week about model Tara Lynn.
I "liked" the post but it has caused me to reflect this week and really question. Sometimes we go too far I think with the larger women celebration, as much as we go too far the other way by celebrating size zero figures.
You may have seen the post, which reads ok then ends with:
"We women, we gain weight because we accumulate so much wisdom and knowledge that there isn't enough space in our heads, and it spreads all over our bodies.
We are not fat, we are greatly cultivated."
I am not sure I agree.
If you are overweight it is unhealthy. If you are underweight it is unhealthy.
Using a larger size woman as an excuse to go and eat pie is not a brilliant idea either, size zero militants. Diabetes and heart problems ain't fun.
Seeing an image of a plus size, beautiful creature like Tara Lynn absolutely does make me appreciate my curves more. I am happier looking at an image of her and relating to it than seeing an impossibly small waif that I could never look like.
If our media had images of all sized women - after all, we are all different shapes and sizes - it would be a much more balanced world.
But let's not justify inactivity and overeating while we celebrate curves ladies.
What do you think? Do we go too far with role models both large and small?
DD
x
I was having the same thought battle when I saw that post, and I too thought it was a good post until I came across the bit about accumulating wisdom. They were putting forward such a good argument until they stuck that little nugget in there! I think it's great for larger women to see Tara and feel good about themselves, as we all need a little reassurance every now and then, right? But totally agreed that promoting being overweight is not necessarily a good thing. Yes, nobody should discriminate because of weight but we shouldn't be encouraging people to be actively unhealthy.
ReplyDeleteWouldn't it be refreshing to see a size 12/14 lady with a bit of a squidgy belly and nicely sized hips to be used in advertising? I loved the Dove adverts with the ladies of all shapes and sizes: that's the kind of mindset we should be encouraging.
Michelle x
I agree with you. This model looks relatively healthy in my opinion but that doesn't mean we should all strive to be larger. Just like some women look equally as healthy when they are slimmer but we shoulnt all strive to be like them either. What worries me the most is the fact that were all focusing on the skinny vs curvy debate when really we should simply be focusing on ourselves; our own body's, our own health and our own self image. I'm sick of being made to feel less of a woman because I'm not as curvy as most. To all you 'real women' who make ur slim sisters feel bad for being just that please stop, lets stop this 'competition' and just appreciate all our shapes and sizes. Were all women; large and small. But when it affects our health, then it isn't right
ReplyDeleteGreat post
Thanks Michelle and Samantha, really great comments. x
ReplyDeleteI don't think you can win with any of these people, because none of them have exactly the same body as you do.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, we are fed images of skinny women and it does get into your brain. You do evaluate, perhaps even without meaning to why your knees aren't as skinny, how much more flab your arm has. I do at least, but I am learning that these models, celebs or whoever are not me, and whether overweight, underweight or just right - none of them are going to be a role model for me.
Great post though lady, as usual! xx
The only thing you can tell by a body's size is a body's size. If you're judging someone by that alone, any assumptions you make are also yours alone: what that body takes in, how active it is, how healthy it is inside, etc.
ReplyDeletePeople who draw conclusions based on body size are the same ones who go up to someone suffering with chronic disease and say "But you don't look ill!" or if they ask and you tell them how badly you're doing one day, say "Oh, but look at how much weight you've lost!"
Fat/thin doesn't mean unhealthy or "actively unhealthy" (are you psychic?) in the same way fat/thin doesn't mean unfeminine. Fat/thin also doesn't mean doomed to die a horrible death *DUNDUNDUNhorrorfilmat10*.
"Just right" should mean a state of health that allows you, specifically you, to lead the life you want, not an arbitrary dress size that changes depending on which demographic apparel manufacturers want to appeal to or one that your particular group of peers has deemed appropriate.
So right Tam, great comment x
ReplyDeleteMost "plus size" models have hourglass figures and therefore do not have fat in the middle where it's the most unhealthy. If they are being promoted as "it's ok to be big", then I think a lot of women will falsely think that their weight is ok, even though they totally have a different body shape and carry most of their excess weight on their waist.
ReplyDeleteJust a (my) thought.
[...] looks rather skeletal) to illustrate her point. Another brilliant blogger, Dexterous Diva (http://dexterousdiva.co.uk) wrote a similar article, not on being too skinny, but on whether Tara Lynn, a plus size model, was [...]
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