Gender
and Media
Abstract By: Debbie
Slagle
For: VSAR 422, Art,
Technology and the Moving Image
AFFECT OF THE MEDIA ON MALE BODY IMAGE
Thesis:
The “Ideal male body” as
presented in the media affects men and can cause harm to them in the same
manner as the “ideal female body” affects women. The ideal to be achieved for men and women is different, but the
pressures placed on them by the media affect both sexes.
My presentation:
I will focus on male body images
presented in the media and the effect that this has on men. Body image is a term that has come to
represent the “internal” image or representation that we have of our physical
appearance. It is contrasted with the
“outer” image or an objective of attractiveness. It has been found that one’s inner view of attractiveness has a
very low correlation with the actual outer view of attractiveness. Most popular literature focuses on women and
the effect that the media has on a women’s body image, so I wanted to show that
male media body images also affect men.
Men’s dissatisfaction stems from
a feeling that they are too thin, small, or lacking in musculature rather than
a concern that they are too large or weigh too much. Part of this dissatisfaction is attributed to the bombardment of
images men receive of muscular half-naked men on the covers of men’s magazines,
and in advertising. These images are
also played out on television in form of teen-oriented beach party shows and
videos on cable music channels to daytimes soap operas and evenings popular
wrestling shows. The majority of these
images are unrealistically fit.
Some signs of the times are:
·
MH18 a magazine aimed at
teenage boys with the goal to teach them how to exercise and lift weights;
·
Fox naming a beauty king on TV
special, The Sexiest Bachelor in America;
·
Playgirl models have gotten
leaner and more muscular over the years, on average shedding about 12 pounds of
fat, while putting on approximately 27 pounds of muscle over the past 25 years.
One symptom of problems
associated with male body image is muscle dysmorphia, which is an excessive
preoccupation with body size and muscularity.
Mild forms may not cause significant problems, but there have been more
serious forms that caused crippling from lifting of too much weight. Some men are also afflicted with anorexia
and bulimia, but to a much smaller degree than women.
Some keys to overcoming poor body
image are:
·
Recognize that bodies come in
all shapes and sizes.
·
Focus on the qualities that
you like in yourself
·
Look critically at
advertisements that push the “body building” message. Our culture emphasizes the V shaped muscular body shape as the
ideal for men. Magazines targeted at
men tend to focus on articles and advertisements promoting weight lifting,
bodybuilding or muscle toning. Consider
giving up your goal of the perfect male body and work at accepting your body
the way it is.
Technology Equipment Being
Used in my presentation:
I will use a PowerPoint
presentation with media embedded throughout.
References:
Barisoff, Ingrid. The Effects of the Media on Male Body
Image. A thesis submitted to
the
Department of Psychology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
degree of Bachelor of Arts (honors) in Psychology, University of Regina. August 1999.
Hansen, Suzy. Looking Good: Male Body Image in Modern America. Salon.com.
March 5, 2001.
(http://www.salon.com/books/review/2001/03/05/luciano/index.html)
Hellmich, Nancy. Body Fixation May Be Muscling Out Health. USA Today.
September
19,
2000. (http://www.usatoday.com/life/health/men/lhmen049.htm)
Potter, Alicia. Mirror Image. Infoplease.com.
(http://www.infoplease.com/spot/mbil.html)
Rauch, Jonathan. Buff Enough. Reason Online. November 2000.
(http://www.reason.com/0011/cr.jr.buff.html)
Rempel, Byron. Men’s Body Image – The Brad Pitt
Syndrome. AskMen.Com.
(http://www.askmen.com/fashion/austin/38_fashion_style.html)
Thompson, J. Kevin. Body Image, Bodybuilding, and Cultural
Ideals of Muscularity.
August 30,1999.
(http://www.mesomorphosis.com/exclusive/thompson/bodyimage.htm)
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