You’re sitting at home, relaxing in front of the TV, like every night and not even realizing that it is unconsciously telling you what you should look like. No one can escape the images of being skinny. Skinny models are shown on billboards, TV shows, commercials, magazines, and movies. “Today we live in a society obsessed with thinness and youth” (Psychology of Ideal Body Image Part One). Because we cannot escape from thinness, it is ingrained in our heads that it looks better than average looking women. Everything in the media like video games, models, TV, and movies affect one’s body image.
In most video games, the male character is well built, while the female character has curves but is skinny. In Resident Evil 4, Leon, the main character is very good looking and has a lot of muscle, and Ashley, the girl Leon has to protect, has big breasts and is skinny. The zombies and the villains are all small, or chubby. The video game programmers make characters like that, because who would want to play a game where the main character is ugly and fat? But when people play those games, they feel that their body isn’t good enough. In this one case study, “Professor Richard Harris had two study groups: the men played WWF Wrestle Mania 2000; and the women played a beach volleyball game. Participants were questioned prior to playing the video game, then after playing for 15 minutes. Both genders, of course, had negative notions of self-image after playing a complete cycle” (Games Effected By Body Image). It may still be cartoon generated, but it still effects the way they see themselves and what they think is the perfect body.
The most known cause of loathing one’s body is models. Their everywhere and a majority of them are stick thin. “Because [so] many models and actresses are so thin, it makes anorexics think their emaciated bodies are normal” (Do Thin Models Warp Girls’ Body Image). Because those girls see that their body is just like the models body, they’re going to keep starving themselves. A teenage girl just wants to fit in, and if starving themselves works, they will keep doing it. In one YouTube clip, there was a scene where the narrators talk about pictures of models and those pictures are retouched to make the models look skinnier. Those girls are trying to be as skinny as the models, but if someone were to be that skinny they would die. Your body cannot sustain with little nutrients. Girls “who were more exposed to the most fashion magazines were more likely to suffer from poor body images” (Do Thin Models Warp Girls’ Body Image). Girls are idolizing these models that are not real. Because we think skinny is beautiful, they believe they need to be skinny to be beautiful. So many girls worry about their weight and watch what they eat, because their afraid of getting fat. Young girls are starting to even go on diets to get thin. It is sad because their bodies are still growing and their cutting off vital nutrients to their bodies. Models are the picturesque body type and a majority of girls and teenagers strive towards those bodies.
Without even knowing it, we take up habits we see on TV. “[…] children may begin modeling the dieting and exercising behaviors they see on television even before they actually begin to internalize the thin-body ideal” (Counseling Corner). These kids do not even know what they’re doing, their just watching what their eating and how much their working out. If their starting to work out now, what about when they get older and they start over exercising and dieting on top of that. ‘In 1995, television arrived and within three years the percentage of girls demonstrating dissatisfaction rose from12.7% to 29.2%” (Super Skinny Women on TV). Because these girls do not really know what a perfect body looks like because they have only seen their mom, but once they start watching TV, they notice the more pretty girls and want to look like them. Once girls notice the way they look, and if they think they’re not pretty enough, they will start not liking their body. “[…] television viewing increases children’s exposure to dieting images, ideas and behaviors” (Counseling Corner). Models and Actresses are role models for these girls and teenagers. If they see or hear them doing something, these girls are going to do it too. There is a diet pill commercial out starring Ronnie from The Jersey Shore, by using Ronnie; more people are going to buy these diet pills. Because he is using those pills, and he is well built, other people are going to use them. People do not think about it, but watching TV does affect how one does see them self.
Movies, which are a lot like TV, affect body image in negative ways. In that same YouTube clip, the narrator talked about Gabourey Sidibe, the actress who played Precious, was made fun of my Howard Stern because she was fat. He said her career would end there and no one will want to hire her because she is fat. But that is how we tend to be, we don’t like the fatter actresses and their not as popular because they’re not as pretty. After her movie Hair Spray, Nikki Blonsky has not really had much of an acting career. She had a show but it tanked. Our society pays more attention to skinny actresses more than we have of world leaders who had more of a shape to their body. Even actresses have to deal with the pressure of being skinny.
There are many causes as to why many people have problems with their body. Because we think being skinny is beautiful, many girls are unhealthy. There are eating disorders, dieting, and over exercising these girls do because of models, or the people they see on TV. Video games, models, TV, and movies effect many people’s body image. We may not know it, but wanting to be skinny is everywhere, and it effects everyone.
Works Cited
"Gamers Affected By Body Image in Video Games - G4tv.com." Video Games, Game Reviews & News - G4tv.com. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
"The Psychology of Ideal Body Image-Pt. 1 ©Barbara A. Cohen Ph.D." Center for Healing the Human Spirit - Barbara Cohen Ph.D. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
Author. "How Super Skinny TV Stars Are Harming Our Health -- Health & Wellness -- Sott.net." Signs of the Times News for Wed, 09 Mar 2011. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
"TV's Effect on Body Image." Associated Counselors & Therapists. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
USATODAY.com - Do Thin Models Warp Girls' Body Image?" News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com. 26 Sept. 2006. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
"YouTube - the Media's Influence on Body Image." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. .
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