This week we are going to read “The story of my body” by Judith Cofer. The story of my body describes the story of Judith Cofer’s significant life moment when she moved from Puerto Rico to the United States and her experience of how she was criticized by her body image when coming into another culture. In her book, she mainly described how her body image was changed in different environments. For example, she mentioned she was superior and highly regarded even though she was a minority. However, when she moved to the United States, she encountered a hierarchy for popularity that was dominated by white girls. Therefore, in this context of research, I am going to discuss the development of how people viewed their bodies image in western culture.
Body image and self-esteem were highly influenced by social media and people’s perspectives. Actually, people’s points of view toward bodies image can be trackback the 18th and 19th centuries. Historically, women’s bodies size and images were the best survival tool in patriarchal societies; expectations about a woman’s physical characteristics were based on male’s desire and marriageability. Consequently, women’s decisions are often restricted by women’s notions of selfhood, and their decisions must follow society and cultural expectations that forcing them to transform their body image into an idolized image. For example, in Victorian England, women would dress in corsets and crinolines to physically transform themselves into hourglasses ideal shapes. Another example is that in ancient China, women’s bodies are equated to power.
The perspectives toward women’s bodies images were changed until the start of feminism activities, which is the time women started to bring positivity and optimism when viewing their bodies image. Among the four waves of feminism, only until the third wave, which begins in the mid-’90s and engaging by post-colonial and post-modern thinking. In this phase, many opinions were finally established, including the thoughts of “universal womanhood,” body, gender, sexuality, and heteronormativity. The topic of females pretty was slowly playing an important role when coming into discussions of gender equality. Nowadays, even though social media still exist the view of ” standard women’s image”, we are seeing more opportunities to every kind of woman such as clothing brands is seeking plus-size models.
The image is describing the invention of corsets and crinolines and the 18th and 19th women shaping themselves into society’s expectations. Women are putting on corsets and crinolines.
The image is describing the value toward women’s bodies image in he 21st centuries.- there’s no perfect bodies image, and you are just beautiful as you are
Citation:
Four waves of feminism. Pacific University. (2020, July 13). https://www.pacificu.edu/magazine/four-waves-feminism.
Ngo, N. T. (2019, October 1). What historical ideals of women’s shapes teach us about women’s self-perception and body decisions today. Journal of Ethics | American Medical Association. https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/what-historical-ideals-womens-shapes-teach-us-about-womens-self-perception-and-body-decisions-today/2019-10.
Bruk, D. (2017, June 14). ‘Feminist’ approach to body positivity is actually really condescending. Observer. https://observer.com/2017/06/feminist-approach-to-body-positivity-is-actually-really-condescending/.
I find the evolution of perspective of the female body absolutely fascinating. I liked how you kept referring to female figures as equating to power. Nowadays, I think about the power of “pretty privilege” that guides societal thinking, but I don’t really think about how life changing it was in the past. By wearing a corset or playing into body illusions, a woman of the past was immediately given more respect, superiority, or jealousy. I think social media has really helped with reclaiming this power in both good and bad ways. The current body positivity movement is fantastic and has helped women gain more respect for themselves. On the other hand, social media can be toxic in the same way that competitive women would judge others in the past. Someone will always have something to say about your body, but social media does offer a platform to do it over a screen.
I’ve never learned about all four waves of feminism before so I am glad you brought it up! I would love to read more about each one individually. I think you did a great job using history to tie in present attempts.
It is so interesting to see how the beauty standard for women has evolved over the past hundred or so years. The point you made about women and how they present their bodies changing from a patriarchal tool of survival to the body positivity movement is fascinating. Although society is still bound to the ropes of the current ‘beauty standard,’ (which is still extremely prevalent) I feel as though some women have been able to escape and moreso overcome the expectation of the beauty standard in one way or another. The ability to do so is not only liberating, but contributes to one’s stability in selfhood and perception of oneself as a women in a judgmental society.
As you explained from Cofer’s “The Story of My Body,” I do find it interesting how different cultures have different beauty standards.
I think that your discussion of the evolution of a women’s body is so important and interesting to read about. The idea of body types and the way our bodies look is a topic that society touches on so much but I never realized where these ideas actually came from. I think that it is so fascinating that the idea of a “perfect hourglass” shape is something that was desired by men in patriarchal societies. It is crazy to think that men have shaped some ideas of how women’s body should look. I agree with your point about how social media and the third wave of feminism have helped to embrace all body types by including plus size models and more sizing options. Although, social media can sometimes cause us to compare ourselves to other peoples bodies, it is important that we remember that everyones body is different in their own way and we should not compare it to what we see in social media. Instead we should use social media as a way to embrace the fact that everyones body is different and that is how it should be!
I did not even consider that there were body image issues in the past despite how obvious it is that there were. I think that a lot of the time unhealthy body images are correlated with social media. I know someone who has struggled with their body image for a very long time and they explained to me how they can’t even go on Instagram. Unfortunately, it seems that as photo technology continues to advance, people will increase the beauty standard to even more unrealistic levels. I do think that the lack of photo editing, or even just pictures all together in the past probably did correlate to a more reasonable idea of what is achievable beauty.
With social media, body image and positivity have definitely become more prominent in society. However, I have never really thought about how body image has changed from history up until the current date. I find it interesting how you described women’s expectations in what they wore and how society perceived them. Now, body positivity is widely accepted and is promoted all throughout social media to love yourself no matter what you look like – everyone is beautiful in their own way and shouldn’t have to change to “fit in”.
Reading your project made me wonder how people perceived body image expectations in the past: Were people against following society’s expectations for what women had to wear? Were they too afraid to speak up? Did they simply comply with gender norms without giving much thought? Or, did they agree that women had to dress a certain way to be seen as “powerful” and accepted?
This was wonderful to read. I really did not realize that women’s decisions are largely based on society’s expectations. Women have to do certain things because of what our society says that they have to do to look at certain way even if they do not want to. I do find it interesting that when you are talking about Judith Cofer’s “The Story of my body” you discussed how when Judith Cover was in Puerto Rico she was viewed as one of the most beautiful women in her country, but when she moved to the United States it was not this way because she had to compete with white women. This is such a big issue because this problem is causing a lot of ethnic people in the United States to go to extreme measures for their body just to compete with the societal standards and white women. This can often result in harming your body. I was wondering if you think that women still have to make their physical body features based on how men want to see them just link in the 18th and 19th century?
I find body image to be a very interesting point in discussions. I personally have fallen into the traps of trying to conform myself to fit the “beauty standard” that society determines. It was very interesting to me to hear how it has changed throughout history. Women wearing corsets to fit the social norm in Victorian England is so interesting to see because it shows how issues of today were relative to that time period. Women are constantly working to change the image of themselves because society sets high standards and women feel obligated to meet that standard. After seeing how women have changed for society thorough out the years it made me wonder where it all started. Did people in power decide that women had to fit a standard? Or did women create this idea of fitting in by themselves? I am curious as to why women in particular feel obligated to fit these standards, and why we have felt this way for many years.
It is especially concerning to see how many ethnic women are pressured by society to appeal to Eurocentric beauty standards. Judith Cofer’s experience of coming to America and being criticized by her body image is something that hits close to home. Growing up, I was convinced that I needed to do everything in my power to essentially feel like one of the ‘white girls’ in my grade. Because to me, at that time, being white meant being liked. I would remove all body hair, straighten my hair daily, and convince myself that I was embarrassed to be Indian. To see young girls try to fit into this mold of what women should look and act like in western culture is truly disheartening. The years of self-love girls have to practice to overturn the amount of damage caused by such strict standards is something that should never take place. This was an amazing read and I’m so glad you discussed how much scrutiny women face in regards to their bodies.
Very good points about “standard women’s image”. Who is actually the ones coming up with how the others should look or feel about themselves. I believe females have shifted and we are seeing a lot more “ones” than “others”. Feminists movements have been able to allow the shift so females can become the “ones” without self doubt. On the other hand I can’t help but feel we have a long way to go still from personal experience raising teenage girls. It seems the social media has set us back with all the technology today and filters which allows girls to believe everyone is flawless in their skin. The prejudice Cofer faced seemed to follow her here in the U.S. her entire adolescent life. I believe as a society we have grown and are able to appreciate different ethnicities. However, isn’t it scary what is going on in today’s world and how some women in other countries are facing this patriarchy once again?
I believe your topic on a women’s image in society has come a long way throughout history. In society today, women are treated with more respect and given the same opportunities as men. One example of this improvement in women’s rights is the ability to vote. Even with major advances, women today still experience many struggles. Feminist groups continue to fight for women’s rights which truly help to eliminate self doubt within a women.
As I read your post I was thrilled to learn more about the women’s body image in the past. I learned about the issues and problems that have existed in the past as well as how they were resolved.
I do think that as a society, we’ve grown a lot when it comes to body image, and its wonderful to see people confidently defying “norms.” However, body image is till a pressing issue. You mentioned that the standards of body image for women were determined by men. This is still true! While there is more inclusivity today, we still teach girls as a society that the way men view their bodies is what’s important. This could not be less true, and I hope we continue to fight body image standards in our culture moving forward.
I agree with your statement that women’s bodies have been seen as almost a survival tool throughout history. Women have been defined by only their bodies for so long by so many civilizations. As time progresses, what society views as important changes, but this still holds true in modern times. Women have progressed past this somewhat thanks to the rise of feminism, but it still needs a lot of work.
I think that the topic of women’s body image and the ideal image changing throughout time is very interesting. Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, women were expected to look a certain way in order to be desirable, but men were also under no illusions that that was a natural feature. Corsets, bustles, and crinolines were utilized by women, but men were aware, and the woman’s natural body remained unchanged. Now, however, women are expected not to wear a corset, but to still have a certain look to their waist. Body modification is much more prevalent today not just because of increased availability but because women are now expected not to simply enhance their figures with certain clothings, but to have their actual body fit the beauty standard. Your analysis into the changing beauty standard, as well as how it is different when you do not fit the confines of the ideal American woman, are in depth and fascinating.
I think that this presentation was a great way to introduce Cofer’s “The Story of My Body” because it really shined a light upon her struggles, not as a Puerto Rican immigrant, but simply as a woman in a very pressured time of life and society. The connections you made between practices of as far back as hundreds of years ago and today regarding women’s appearances sadly really made me think about how, despite some positive changes, the topic of women’s bodies and the relation to worth is still omnipresent.
I believe that body image can be a positive and negative topic when it comes to people in society. It interesting to know that body image was a topic back in the 18th and 19th century, This just goes to show that body image has be deemed “important” to women and men for a long time. I also find it fascinating that in different cultures, different body images are favorited. Society media now a days has had a huge impact on body image and unfortunately has been implanted in our minds as at a young age. I hope we eventually get better about this topic in the future and disregard body image indefinitely.
I really enjoyed your blog post and I was amazed at how crucial it was that people’s bodies looked a certain way back then. Our society is definitely on the uprise with this situation as many stores advertise now that every body is beautiful and to be grateful for the body you were given which these places should. Social media and a few various stores still can make women feel self conscious about themselves which can be detrimental to their mental health. I have also read many articles about stores and how they photoshop the images of their models to make them look perfect to their eyes but not realistic to society. It’s important for us to not compare ourselves to others that we see on social media as well because this may make us feel insecure.
I really enjoyed reading your blog post and to read how the women’s beauty standard has evolved over the years. The post you made truly does connect to how Cofer explained her story concerning her struggles of being a Puerto Rican immigrant and a woman during a hard time in society. Although there has been some positive changes to improve the way society views the beauty standards of women, this post made me realize how society still does have a negative impacts, in ways, on the view of women’s beauty standards.
Beauty has always been a social construct. It has always been defined by the society. The definition of beauty keeps changes and is different to everyone. However, I am glad that women are now speaking up and setting the beauty standards for themselves, earlier, men influenced the beauty standards. Moreover, after reading that I realized how beauty standards are different in every culture. Coming from India, being a lighter skin color was considered prettier than being dark. Moreover, lotions to make you whiter were advertised everywhere which is wrong, I only realized that after moving to America.
Additionally, it was interesting to know about the waves of feminism as I did not know anything like that happened.
It was very interesting to read your post and I do believe society and media has played role in positively and negatively impact the perception of women’s body image. Media puts great emphasis on how women look, and we on other hand construct their identity based on the media images we see. As you mentioned in the post, with different waves of feminism, women have made significant stride on the perception of their body images. With those movements women had developed more self-respect and perception of self-worth regardless of their body image.
This is an interesting topic I think. The women’s body and their image are change along the time. Because of the culture. society, but also their own ideas. Hundreds of years ago, female’s body and their images were always decided by male’s ideas and their statements. Now, female have more rights to decide what they want to look, and to represent their own ideas. However, the social media my also want to “teach” what female look like such as whether they shoud be thin. The change of images represents the change of the culture.
This week’s discussion on Judith Cofer and her explanation of how she was judged based on her body image reflects a lot to most women today. It could be that with evolution, there ae changes on how the society judges female based on their bodies but I still feel that this kind of perception still exists even in modern society.
With feminism though, women are now been taught on the value of self-acceptance and not relying too much on social media to describe a ‘perfect female’.
In recent years, due to social media, body image and appearance have become more relevant than ever. Women have made significant progress with different movements to develop more respect. I love how you mentioned that the standards of body image are determined by men. I think that this cruel idea has led to some behaviors that are becoming popular today, such as body modification on social mediaI. I thought this post was very interesting because this topic is so prevalent today. Almost everyone has an opinion or some thoughts on the matter. Hopefully moving forward, people have a more optimistic view on their own body image.
This is such an insightful subject. It goes to show that body image issues are nothing new. It’s amazing how much feminism has done for this problem. As you mentioned, the female community has gone from adjusting their body for male validation to self-acceptance. This is so wonderful. While I do think that social media does have a large impact in the way that women negatively view themselves, it has also been a source of positivity that allows and encourages them to embrace their uniqueness and individuality.
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When I think of women and body image, I think of it as a way for people to control others. It reminds me a lot of the self and other that De Beauvoir explains when it comes to gender and men seen as the default and women seen as a twisted or adjacent form of the default. Because men have historically held a position of power, having an ideal body image not only objectifies women into needing to be chosen (similar to the slave in a master/slave dialectic), but also the idea that men could change the societal norm of what the ideal women should look like so that women always have to be at the mercy of what others think in order to do things or obtain wealth, power, have their needs met, etc.