Sunday, December 4, 2016

Mass Media and Social Media


Social media is the biggest form of mass media being used by young women today. Social media has influenced how women and young girls see themselves as these pictures of unattainable bodies and women online are becoming the goal, or the standard nowadays. This article also points out that although social media plays a huge role in body image, other forms of mass media are having the same affects on women in our society.



Although body image pressures have always existed for women especially, social media has emphasized this problem for women. Connected back to the seventies, body image is transitioning back to the thin, boyish body type.




More and more people are suffering from the affects of social media as it higher the standards for women everywhere. This article also focuses on what our society must do to reverse these affects.




Body ideals were easier to attain before social media was apart of the picture, and ideals became more and more unreachable. It’s easier for girls and women to become dissatisfied with their bodies even if they’re at a healthy weight and size as the pictures of women on certain medias are unrealistic for most women.




Again, medias like the television, movies, and magazines drill into the minds of women that thin is the only kind of beautiful image. Women are portrayed in revealing clothing, flaunting their beauty that viewers feel as though they cannot achieve. 



Unlike most other feminine products, Dove has enforced a positive look on all women with all different body types by focusing on inner beauty in their social media advertisements. For example, Dove started the “speakbeautiful” hashtag which is made for people to share positive feedback on their own and others’ pictures.




This article focuses on young girls and boys body influences, specifically sociocultural factors which includes social media. For girls, the biggest factor for pressures of body image are best friends and their mothers. 


Race and Ethnicity


  • Online Sources/Blogs


Gender and Racial differences in body image amongst college students


8 Black Women talk about expectations for their body image


A scholarly article describing the effects of culture on body image


An article describing the fact that although different cultures have different ideals, body dissatisfaction is universal


  • Videos


A video showing what different countries consider the “ideal” body image




Watson, L. B., Ancis, J. R., White, D. N., & Nazari, N. (2013). Racial Identity Buffers African American Women From Body Image Problems and Disordered Eating. Psychology Of Women Quarterly, 37(3), 337-350.

1970s


This page points out the changes that developed through the decades of body image for women. When focusing on the 70s specifically, the article talks about how women from this decade felt the pressure to be the ideal thin that all of the celebrities were, even if it meant putting their health at risk.





This article shares that models in the 70s weighed on average much less than the average woman at the time. The ideal body type for women was skinny as well as fit, a nearly impossible figure to attain for most women. Magazines and the media sexualized women on a normal basis and this is just one example.




This article brings up one of the positive sides of being a woman during this era- although the ideal figure for women was naturally thin and fit at this time, women were also starting to come out of their shells- by wearing pants, stepping out of the stereotypically job occupations set up for them by their husbands and society, and overall being more independent, women were beginning to step outside of their role sexually.




This site shows examples of ads focused on appearance of women in the seventies. In each ad, women are sexualized and targeted toward men. The ads combine for example women and cigarettes, or women and sex, etc. For example, in the picture shown above, women are compared to cigarettes in the way that the best form of both are ‘thin and rich.’



Farrah Fawcett was the poster woman of the 1970s. Being the ideal woman in terms of figure and beauty, every woman strived to look like Fawcett. This article talks about how Fawcett became famous, and popular posters of her sold in thousands of her looking sexual in her pose and facial expressions.




Again, this article focuses on the kinds of women who achieved the ideal figure in each decade. For the seventies, Farrah Fawcett achieved the ideal look with her lean figure. This cite also talks about the fashion that was popular at the time.




Certain health issues became more common in this age because of the popular body type, including anorexia. 

1990's



  • Online Sources/Blogs


An article about the 90’s woman

  • Videos


Monica went from being obese to extremely stick-thin; she did this to get revenge on Chandler for calling her fat

  • TV Shows
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096542/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108778/



https://www.pinterest.com/mbregendahl/photos-showing-how-female-beauty-standards-have-ch/



1950's





  • Online Sources/Blogs 

This blog features weight gain ads from the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s.

Blog on Marilyn Monroe

Women's body image in the 50's compared to women's body image now

  • Movies


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052357/?ref_=nm_knf_i1

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048605/  











1940s

After World War Two, being skinny wasn't the ideal figure. Broad shoulders and curves became the new look. Unfortunately, this did not mean that strong was the ideal look yet, however height and superiority were the body ideals throughout this decade.




This ad shows a woman showing off the weight she gained by using Ironized Yeast tablets. This advertisement helps show the differences between today's ideal body shape and that from the 40s, when skinny was the last type of figure any woman wanted.




Marilyn Monroe was the ideal figure and woman during the 1940s. She conquered the look that screamed embracing the curves that you're born with. In this photograph, she looks both happy and confident in the way she reveals her stomach and chest area -- portraying what every women wanted during this decade.





This "prezi" touches upon many differences between present day and the 1940s in terns of what it means and meant to be truly beautiful, and what that used to entail compared to what it entails nowadays such as weight requirements for models, average waist measurements, and how the media has changed certain beauty standards since the forties. 





A part of the reason why the traditional look came back into style is because of the Great Depression and the impact it had over our society. The style was based on what felt practical, and women began to embrace their feminine figures.



Before the 40’s, a woman who depicted the ideal look was the well-known Mae West. As more and more women became frustrated and fed-up with this unrealistic figure (perfect curves in all of the right places), the ideal look changed to healthy and not stick-thin.



This article also expresses how big of an impact the war had over this decade and the way people, specifically women, portrayed themselves on the outside. Their growing power in society was shown through their bodies and clothing. This article points out that although women were becoming more confident in the clothing they wore that showed off their bodies, this left more room for insecurities in women to feel like they must have the perfect body to flaunt. This goes to show that no matter what the style or ideal look is throughout each decade, women have always felt a pressure to look perfect.




Eating Disorders: Anorexia Nervosa


Online Articles

Examines how media influences body image and likelihood of developing eating disorders

  Statistics about Anorexia and other eating disorders. Helpful informative site with resources for people struggling with ED.

History of eating disorders

Videos

 

Academic Source 
  Brumberg, J. J. (2000). Fasting girls : The history of anorexia nervosa (1st Vintage books ed.). New
                   York: Vintage Books.
Recommended pages:  pg. 192-204 and Beauty and Guilt pg. 236-241 

The 1930's

Online Articles

http://glamourdaze.com/history-of-makeup/1930s
Description of the idealized make-up and style of the 1930's 

Examples of role models in the media that possessed these idealized traits, body types and clothing styles

Measurements of the "ideal woman" of the 30's
Videos


Images


 The above images are from several additions of Esquire (a magazine for men) from the 1930's.
Esquire.com 

The 1920's

Image result for ideal body image 1920
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG-MCBJDYXearthVAw57RT_fjcUZAIwu3GENtssl11UvP2RUack2bp3inqZfNkg85rkzAj_1E0ot-IcAsbrk4FOjsqecGbaSbWo1X6N7dVTQCUmWEj0u8_LNRjaZYVAvzdZ7hy-_h76Ao/s1600/AmericanVenusOS.jpg







https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTGxWkWCiDKMV5QIF5ngJ-onP3ub0geLXhFSuXmWa6u9wRlsZHQbg





Articles and Blog Posts


 Article discussing the social pressures to fit the ideal body of the 1920's
 
Depicts the ideal look of the "typical" flapper girl including; make-up, clothing style, and body type

One of the first books written about dieting and counting calories.
Videos

Academic Source (UMD Library):
 Conor, L. (2004). The spectacular modern woman : Feminine visibility in the 1920s. Bloomington:
               Indiana University Press. http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip0410/2003022618.html
Recommended pages: 150-152; 209-214