Fat and Fabulous
Rejecting The Ideal Body Image
Many women feel that there is only one perfect shape and size that constitutes as the ideal body. The characteristics of the perfect woman are tall, thin, and “Barbie” like, but only a small amount of women actually live up to these outrageous standards. The media strongly influences our perception of what we should look like. This is the reason many people are not satisfied with the way they are. Kathleen LeBesco’s article “Fat and Fabulous: Resisting Construction of Female Body Ideals,” describes that the conditions we live in make it easier for us to be overweight. Now a day, jobs require little physical activity and fast food is more convenient than ever. Her article focuses on standing up against stereotypes and fighting against the idea that the ideal body should be a certain way. In a similar sense, the popular television series: Drop Dead Diva, is about seeing the world on the opposite end of the spectrum. When Deb, a thin, beautiful, aspiring model dies and comes back to life as Jane Bingham, a smart, charismatic, lawyer who is larger woman, she is forced to see things differently. In comparison to Kathleen Lebesco’s article, Jane Bingham rejects the ideal body image by claiming “fat pride” and proving that you do not have to look a certain way to be successful.
“Fat pride” is described in Kathleen LeBesco’s article as larger women being comfortable with their bodies: “women who claim ‘fat pride’ and inhabit their culturally scorned bodies comfortably get little refuge from the critical, discriminatory glare of those around them” (247). Jane Bingham often displays “fat pride” in Drop Dead Diva. Ultimately, women who do not live up to society’s standards are frowned upon for being comfortable with how they look. Jane defies this by being comfortable and confident with who she is. While most of the world may say that “beauty comes in a size six” ( LeBesco 248), according to Kim
Many women feel that there is only one perfect shape and size that constitutes as the ideal body. The characteristics of the perfect woman are tall, thin, and “Barbie” like, but only a small amount of women actually live up to these outrageous standards. The media strongly influences our perception of what we should look like. This is the reason many people are not satisfied with the way they are. Kathleen LeBesco’s article “Fat and Fabulous: Resisting Construction of Female Body Ideals,” describes that the conditions we live in make it easier for us to be overweight. Now a day, jobs require little physical activity and fast food is more convenient than ever. Her article focuses on standing up against stereotypes and fighting against the idea that the ideal body should be a certain way. In a similar sense, the popular television series: Drop Dead Diva, is about seeing the world on the opposite end of the spectrum. When Deb, a thin, beautiful, aspiring model dies and comes back to life as Jane Bingham, a smart, charismatic, lawyer who is larger woman, she is forced to see things differently. In comparison to Kathleen Lebesco’s article, Jane Bingham rejects the ideal body image by claiming “fat pride” and proving that you do not have to look a certain way to be successful.
“Fat pride” is described in Kathleen LeBesco’s article as larger women being comfortable with their bodies: “women who claim ‘fat pride’ and inhabit their culturally scorned bodies comfortably get little refuge from the critical, discriminatory glare of those around them” (247). Jane Bingham often displays “fat pride” in Drop Dead Diva. Ultimately, women who do not live up to society’s standards are frowned upon for being comfortable with how they look. Jane defies this by being comfortable and confident with who she is. While most of the world may say that “beauty comes in a size six” ( LeBesco 248), according to Kim