Fatness
Fatness is certainly not the last form of prejudice in our society, but it may be the most prevalent. This may be why Emme refers to it as 'acceptable', though acceptability is a subjective opinion. As to the panel selected by People magazine to discuss "Shallow Hal", there are some interesting discepancies. None of them seem to be a reasonable 'expert' on healthy body images in severly obese bodies. First, at 5'11' and 200 lbs., reportedly a size 14/16, Emme is on the lowest end of the obesity scale. She is a plus-size, and she surely knows how it feels to be made fun of for her size, but being a 16/18 myself, I know how much worse the prejudice is for women much larger than me. The other two women, Jennifer Holliday and Carnie Wilson, are not fat. They both underwent surgeries to not be fat anymore, which I deem is just as radical as extreme dieting or purging to lose fat or maintain a slim figure. Most women, regardless of their size, have internalized our society's expectations and ideals as to how our bodies should look. "Shallow Hal" just brings them into a wider discussion.
In regard to "Shallow Hal", I was appalled at the film's blatant mockery of fat women. No mention was made as to Hal's or Mauricio's fatness. There were no jokes at their expense based on their obesity. Every time an insult was made about Rosemary's fatness, Hal's repudiations weren't based on his acceptance of her size, but were made into jokes because of his ignorance as to how big she really was. The whole premise is how funny it is that he is in love with a fat woman but doesn't know it.
It is sad how other people's fatness is often deemed okay for discussion. This is especially the case with women's fatness, and is at the root of the widespread reality of eating disorders, body-image issues, and related concerns of many women and girls in our society today.
Comments
a4dyp7
Posted by: Rmrpkaye | July 15, 2009 9:37 AM