Transcript File - sociology 101

Aim: How do gender & culture relate to
concepts of beauty & body image?

Do Now:
What do
you think
the ideal
female &
male body
images are in
the United
States
today?
Describe in
detail.
Culture, Gender, & Beauty:



What do you consider beautiful or attractive for men and/or
women? Where do your ideas come from?
What does it mean to be ‘beautiful’ in our society?
Are there differing standards for men and women in terms
of being ‘attractive’ in our society? How so?
Japanese Geishas
Foot Binding: A custom begun during the Tang
dynasty and lasting until the 20th century

"Because I
bound my
own feet, I
could
manipulate
them more
gently until
the bones
were broken.
Young
bones are
soft, and
break more
easily," she
says.
"Every pair of small feet
costs a bath (kang) of tears"
A bound foot
A bandaged
bound foot
The Cost of Looking Good???
List
and describe some
things that people in this
country do to meet the
standards of beauty our
society has…
The Price of looking good???
Burma/Thailand
•
•
•
•
Members of the Kayan tribe
At just 5 years old, girls start
wearing brass rings around their
necks
As they grow older, more rings
are added
Ultimate sign of female elegance
and status. Some neck pieces
can weigh up to 22 pounds.
"If I take the rings off now, I
won't look nice anymore,"
one woman says. "They
really are a part of my life."
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/cha
nnel/taboo/videos/long-neck-women/

The Maori people of New Zealand
practice a sacred beauty ritual—
tattooing. Believe women are more
attractive when their lips and chins are
tattooed. A woman with full, blue lips
is considered the most beautiful and
desirable.

Women of Karo tribe in southern
Ethiopia. During childhood, girls allow
their elders to cut scars onto their
stomachs. Once a Karo girl has
received the last of her scars, she's
allowed to marry and have children.
"The main reason for my scars is to
attract a male that will give me joy,
because I will be beautiful and
hopefully get a husband," says one
girl during her Taboo interview.
Discussion Questions:







Where does our concept of body image come from?
Why do you think it’s changed over time?
To what extent does the media standard affect your
opinion of ideal body image?
What are some sanctions for deviating from the ideal
body image?
To what extent does culture play a role?
In what ways are physical standards different for
men/women?
To what extent is body image created/upheld by the
opposite gender (i.e. – men generating the ideal female
body image…)
http://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=Xpa
OjMXyJGk
Dove Sketches
Commercial (3
minutes)
Body Image
 A picture in our
mind’s eye
 Belief about how
others perceive us
 How we feel
living in our bodies
What is the “Ideal” body?
Different
standards for
male and female
Different for various ethnic
and cultural groups
Defined by society,
community, family . . .
What is “Ideal” has changed
over time . . .
Body Image Throughout History
Prehistoric
 Fertility
goddess
Wide hips highly desirable
Body Image Throughout History
120 BC
Venus de Milo
1400’s Botticelli’s
Birth of Venus
Greek goddess
Art depicted beauty –
soft and curvaceous
Body Image Throughout History

1500’s
Leonardo da Vinci’s
Mona Lisa

1600’s
Rubens’
Garden of Love
Body Image Throughout History
 1880’s
 Plump body,
pale complexion
 Representing
wealth,
abundance of
food &
refined lifestyle
Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon
Body Image Throughout History
Early
1900’s
 Corseted,
hour-glass look
1890’s-1920’s
Body Image Throughout History
1920’s
 Era
of the flat-chested,
slim-hipped flapper
Body Image Throughout History

1950’s
 Full-figured
shapes of
Marilyn Monroe and
Jayne Mansfield
 Typical models
 5’8”
 Weight  132 lbs.
 Height
1940’s-1960’s

Women found sexuality a new
source of power. Clothing
became skimpier in the 1940's,
until World War II broke out.
Feeling the "American tradition"
threatened, families reverted to
more conservative values, but
the pin-up remained a staple of
popular culture.The 1960's saw
civil rights campaigns, as well as
a new wave of feminism,
throwing off the domesticity of
the 50's. As women sought to
distance themselves from the
role of wife and mother, the
androgynous ideal once again
surfaced in Twiggy, a stick-thin
model made popular overnight
by a single photo shoot.
Body Image Throughout History

1960’s
 The
gaunt
Twiggy look
Height: 5’7”
Weight: 98 pounds
Body Image Throughout History
Miss America was
normal weight in the
1920’s through
early 60’s
Underweight since
the mid 60’s
Body Image Throughout History

1970’s and 1980’s
 Taller,
thinner look
 No visible body fat
 Muscles highly toned
from hours of
working out

Typical models
 Height  5’8”
 Weight  117 lbs.
Body Image Throughout History

Early 1990’s
 Waif-like
figure of
Kate Moss
 Pre-teen look in adult
women
< 4% of women have this
tall, very thin look naturally
Typical models
 Height  5’10”
 Weight  110 lbs
Body Image Throughout History

Late 1990’s
 Narrow
hips yet
large breasts
Rare combination
without breast
implants
 Typical models
 Height  5’10”
 Weight 110
lbs.

Body Image Throughout History

2000’s

Most girls and women do
NOT look like this!
Average model:




Height  5’8” – 5’11”
Weight  <120 lbs.
% body fat  <18%
The average North
American woman:
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
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Height  5’4”
Weight  152 lbs.
% body fat  > 32%
Body Image – Culture matters
Women of color
generally have a
very positive body
image and a broader
definition of beauty
than white women.
Body Image
African-
American
models and
actresses often
portray
unrealistic
thinness
Body Image
The
“Ideal” Male
Average Man:
Tall  6’ 
5”10”
Broad shoulders/large muscles
Narrow waist  30”
34-36”
Average male model:
weighs 145#
weighs 170#
15% body fat
23% body fat
Body Image
Historical Male Body
Image
Michelangelo's David
looks more realistic
than the muscle men
of today.
Impact of the Media
Aim: To what extent is behavior
dictated by societal standards of
beauty?

Do Now: What is your
reaction to the picture
to the left? Do you
find it beautiful or
ugly?
Burma/Thailand



Members of the Kayan
tribe
At just 5 years old, girls
start wearing brass rings
around their necks
As they grow older, more
rings are added
Ultimate sign of female
elegance and status.
Some neck pieces can
weigh up to 22 pounds.
"If I take the rings off
now, I won't look nice
anymore," one woman
says. "They really are a
part of my life."
India


Homemade remedies
include a mixture of
turmeric, lemon and
honey on her skin to
achieve a glowing
complexion.
Brides also wear special
clothing and jewelry,
including a forehead
chain, on their special
days. A dot of red powder
on the face—known as a
kumkum—is also thought
to make a woman more
attractive.
India

Each year, more than 1,000 tons of human hair are imported into the United States and used to
create extensions and weaves. Some of the best quality and most desirable hair comes from
India.
Where do they get all these long locks? Some of it originates at the Venkateswara Temple in
southern India, one of Hinduism's holiest sites. Many of the worshipers who visit this temple
leave a special offering for Lord Venkateswara—their hair. It's part of a ritual called tonsuring,
the cutting of hair for religious reasons. Every day, thousands of Hindus sit before the temple
barbers to offer their hair and please the God."
Annually, the temple earns about $18 million selling this hair to exporters. As soon as the hair
leaves the devotee's head, it starts the journey to someone else's.
New York City stylist Jay Ferrara uses "temple hair" in his extensions. "When this hair comes
from India, it's beautiful," he says. For short extensions, Jay says he charges clients $2,000,
and if you want longer hair, it will cost you as much as $4,000.
Temple hair accounts for just 25 percent of the Indian hair market. The rest comes from women
who collect the hair that comes out naturally and sell it. It's called the dead hair market. You
may have 60 women in one village who pool their hair together, and they'll sell it for $2. So
they're getting pennies for this.
http://www.oprah.com/media/20081
024_tows_japan
New Zealand



The Maori people of
New Zealand
practice a sacred
beauty ritual—
tattooing.
Believe women are
more attractive
when their lips and
chins are tattooed.
A woman with full,
blue lips is
considered the most
beautiful and
desirable.
Ethiopia


Women of Karo tribe in
southern Ethiopia
During childhood, girls allow
their elders to cut scars onto
their stomachs.
"The main reason for my
scars is to attract a male
that will give me joy,
because I will be beautiful
and hopefully get a
husband," says one girl
during her Taboo
interview.
Once a Karo girl has
received the last of her
scars, she's allowed to marry
and have children.
http://channel.nationalgeographic.c
om/series/taboo/all/Overview#tabVideos/02786_04
Brazil
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Biggest consumer of
diet pills
Emphasis on fitness
Average weight of
women = 110-125
pounds
Plastic surgery
becoming common
(especially breast
implants) Even favelas
(slums) have beauty
salons
New trend is blonde,
straight hair
Indonesia
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
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Stagen used after
women give birth
65 foot long cloth
wrapped tightly
around abdomen
"It is a bit painful,
but I think what it
does is to give the
pressure to our
womb to get back
into the normal size"
WHICH COUNTRY HAS BEEN
DUBBED THE NOSE JOB
CAPITAL OF THE WORLD?
Iran
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60,000 nose jobs a year
Status symbol
"I had a friend who had a
nose job, and she kept the
bandage, if I'm not wrong,
after two years on her
nose just to show
everybody that she had
nose job“
Pharmacists say nose jobs
are so desirable that even
people who haven’t had one
buy bandages to put on their
nose to pretend they had
one
Technology impacts body image
Before
airbrushing
After
airbrushing
a - tidied and highlighted hair
b - reduced shine from skin
c - cleaned up eyebrows
d - changed eye color from brown to blue/applied "makeup"
and whitened eyes
e - lessened bags/shadows under eyes
f - made lips fuller
g - tidied jumper
Reality versus Illusion
"Even I don't wake up
looking like
Cindy Crawford."
-Cindy
Crawford
Body Acceptance

Men have a more positive
body image and overlook
flaws in appearance more
than women.

Do you agree . . .
Women are judged more
on appearance than
men?
Society’s standard of
female beauty is higher
and more inflexible?
If Barbie were real . . .
1971
2003
1959
She would stand 6’ tall,
weigh 101 lbs,
wear a size 4, and her
measurements would be
39-19-33.
Celebrity Plastic Surgery: Better or
Worse?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZtcW6
MKNz4
Part 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu2FC8e8yw
The Swan (9 mins):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMBAT
vlEYFc
Gender Stereotypes in the Media:
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nIXUjz
yMe0