Whether we are watching television, flipping through magazines, or surfing the Internet, we are constantly bombarded with pictures of beautiful men and women. Male images depict chiseled abs and bulking biceps while female photos display flat stomachs, thin arms, and toned legs. Advertisements for diet fads and work-out programs run rampant, and the media in general very heavily promotes the expectation for people to be slender and fit. Countless girls long for the model-esque body type that is so desirable to our modern society, to the point that they resort to starvation, purging, and over-exercising. Skinny and tall has not always been the trend, however, and for this blog post, I have decided to examine the ideal female figures throughout history and the eating habits associated with each.
Let’s rewind to the 15th and 16th centuries. At this point in history, the coveted female shape was the “reproductive woman”. Big bellies were attractive because they portrayed that the women were capable of having children, and women sought to accentuate them with their choice of clothing. Not to mention, being of bigger size showed that they were rich enough to be well-fed. This eventually transitioned into an ideal focusing upon a smaller stomach and accentuated curves, and women again wore clothing to make their features appear plumper. To this point, dieting was a completely ridiculous idea since so many people were involuntarily starving, but the tides changed in the 18th century. Having a dependable food supply gave women the luxury of choosing whether or not they would eat, and suddenly, very thin waists became popular, as did the wearing of corsets.
The 20th century brought about significant changes between decades, starting with a voluptuous trend in the 1910s and transitioning into a boyish, flat, and straight figure in the ‘20s. With the ‘30s and ‘40s returned the curvy figure, although this time with wide shoulders. I find it ironic, as a woman living in today’s society, that advertisements gave advice for ways women could avoid being “too skinny”. Models such as Marilyn Monroe inspired the 1950s’ widespread desire for an hourglass shape, but the ‘60s brought back the boyish, figureless trend. Then from the 1970s forward, the ideal has only become increasingly thinner and taller, and this is when eating disorders like anorexia nervosa became mainstream.
As I read through the articles and synthesized this information, I was fascinated, shocked, and disappointed by what I found. It is apparent to me that the security of living in America is the only way these trends could have occurred in this way, with women having the luxury to choose not to eat in order to be skinny. In other countries, similar to the way the world was in earlier centuries, starving on purpose is absolutely ridiculous because some people simply have no food. I think the ideal projected upon women is unattainable, unhealthy, and extremely damaging, and I think it is time that we begin to eliminate the concept of having just one ideal female. I could not be more of a proponent of promoting universal acceptance of all shapes and sizes.
Sources:
http://www.rehabs.com/explore/womens-body-image-and-bmi/
Shannon M Mcculloch says
I find this to be somewhat of a Paradigm Shift. The change in body image has definitely occurred over the years. It’s kind of weird lately; however, because everyone is saying that you have to be skinny and that being skinny is the prettiest body shape while major companies such as Nike are producing ads that say a big butt is the prettiest or things like that. I think it’s a never ending conflict, really. Being both Curvy and Skinny is what people these days are searching for I believe. It’s sad, really, that self image has become such an important part of our lives. Why don’t we just look deeper to find the true beauty within?
Montana D Morris says
Healthy. That’s what should be attractive and desired. Over time, it is sad what the media and the public has done to individuals’ views of their bodies. This phenomena has been present for both males and females as well. More young males than ever have began taking steroids and growth hormones in an attempt to mimic those on the cover of bodybuilding magazines. In reality, not everyone can reach those points. They are genetically impossible, and for women, it is even worse. They tend to be judged much harsher than male’s for their figures. In reality, people need to learn to eat and exercise to be healthy and to improve their bodies in reasonable manners. If a guy doesn’t desire someone because she is too thin or too thick, then who would want to be with someone that shallow anyways? If a girl isn’t interested in me because the college lifestyle has deflated my arms and cover my abs, well.. hahaha but anyways great post as always Betsy. It really makes you think about what society truly wants out of individuals.
Natasha says
I think the types of standards we are putting on ourselves (everyone) these days is unnecessary and completely unwarranted. This is cliché without a doubt, but it should not matter what anyone looks like, rather the emphasis should be on their personalities and their actions, for it is these things which truly demonstrate what an individual is like. It’s kind of funny to note the trends in what society deems to be a beautiful woman, especially because they seem to tend to double back upon themselves and become desired once again after a temporary fall out of popular favor. I like how you were able to demonstrate this through the facts you’ve found, and this is definitely something more people need to be aware of.
Apoorva Mathur says
It is interesting how a change in time can affect our visions of beauty. I can only imagine someone from the 15th century looking at our ideal image of beauty and wondering how we show our status if we all are trying to achieve this skinny figure. I love watching historically based shows and the most interesting part is sometimes the way the people dress and look. I also find that this can be related to the tanning fad that has emerged. It has only been recently that being tan has become part of the idea of being beautiful. In fact, I find it really funny, because all my friends and cousins in India are always trying to look fairer. They believe that being lighter is more beautiful. So even every culture has a different perception of beauty.
Helena Marie says
It is amazing how media can influence what one believes to be the “perfect” body type. As you mentioned, there were advertisements that promoted gaining weight. While I was cleaning out my grandmothers home, I actually found one of these advertisements to gain weight fast and to achieve the curvy plump body that was desired at the time. I wonder when my grandchildren clean out my house how they will respond to the magazines filled with ways to slim down and tone up. It is interesting to see how ideal body type changes and shifts over time.