by Jennifer Kleps
October 20, 2019
Throughout history, the mass media has played a significant role in the cultural beliefs and behaviors of American society. Advertisements, fashion magazines, and television have consistently had an effect on a woman’s self-image. Women in the media are often portrayed as beautiful flawless beings with long legs and perfect skin. As a result, the world’s perception and standards for the female gender have become drastically unrealistic. With the growth of technology, smartphones, and the development of social networking platforms, women are being objectified and hypersexualized more than ever before. The societal pressure to live up to these impossible beauty standards has had a negative effect on the self-esteem of women all around the world.
In “Race, Online Space, and The Feminine,” Nicole Danielle Schott describes the pro-eating disorder culture online and it’s connection to race and “feminine” identity. There are online forums and communities for people to discuss their eating disorders and how to achieve self-control of their minds and bodies. These people often refer to themselves as “pro-ana” (pro-anorexia) or “pro-mia” (pro-bulimia). Although the majority of people with eating disorders are women, this does not mean that men do not suffer from these emotional disorders. However, according to NEDA (The National Eating Disorders Association) only 25% of eating disorder patients are men while a whopping 75% are women. Many of these women look to supermodels and actresses for inspiration. Supermodel Kate Moss is considered to be an idol in the pro-ana community and many look to her for “thinspiration.” Members of the community strive to have her thigh gap, extenuated collar bone and her size 0 waist and even starve themselves, risking their lives to achieve extreme thinness. These online forums and social networking sites promote unhealthy diets and excessive weight loss techniques. Pro-ana communities use quotes like “you’ll never be thin enough,” to instill an irrational fear of never appearing beautiful enough in the eyes of men. By constantly viewing images of photoshopped and hypersexualized women, young girls are unconsciously brainwashed into never being satisfied with their bodies.
In “I Click And Post And Breathe, Waiting For Others To See What I See,” Minh-Ha T. Pham explains the negative effects of social media on individual substance. Pham defines the term “networked vanity” as the effort to promote one’s personality, image, and life to gain attention. It is argued that the Internet has played a significant role in the increasing number of narcissists. Social media allows people immediate access into the lives of others. Social networks were created to keep people in touch with one another however, they have become platforms of self-promotion. Most people are not their authentic self on the internet, instead individuals develop an online-persona or the person they want the world to believe they are. People typically only post images of themselves at their absolute best whether they’re wearing expensive clothing or on what looks like a lavish vacation; however, these images are not an accurate representation of reality. This “look at me” mentality is a key factor in The Narcissist Epidemic. Platforms like Instagram are full of millions of images of photoshopped women, except it is not just celebrities anymore. Thanks to technology, the ability to photoshop and enhance an image of yourself is right at your fingertips. Women online often edit their bodies to have curves, their skin to be free of imperfections and their teeth to be extremely white. Pham states “behind the self-absorption lies a desperate need for external validation.” Many people now look to the internet as a source of self-esteem, constantly checking their likes and number of followers. In reality, social networking does just the opposite. Girls compare their physical appearance and life accomplishments to others online and often feel envious and discouraged. Constant exposure to these images and the self-promotive culture of social media teaches women that their physical attractiveness is their biggest asset.
Growing up, I often recognized the importance placed on a women’s physical beauty however, it was not until recently I realized the effect it had on me as a young girl. Being the youngest of four, I looked up to my siblings in so many ways. I wanted to go everywhere with my sisters and often recall feeling so heartbroken when I was “too little” to tag along. As I got older and began approaching the age of puberty, I started to become more conscience of my physical appearance. I still had a little bit of baby fat and suddenly realized my sisters were so thin and petite compared to me. This unexpected epiphany lead me to develop extremely unhealthy habits. I would only eat yogurt or fruit and often made excuses for why I was not hungry. I worked out religiously in my room and began taking my ADD medicine to suppress my appetite. I spent hours online researching ways to lose weight fast. While I luckily grew out of this obsessive overly-critical phase within about a year, it was not until two years ago I started to wonder if my thirteen year old self had an eating disorder. Is it so common for woman to feel dissatisfied with their bodies that this kind of unhealthy behavior seems conventional? Although I no longer feel overwhelmed by self-doubt, I have found it difficult to find a woman who has not struggled mentally because of some aspect of their physical appearance.
The systemic sexism in American culture has made it difficult for women and minorities to obtain equality. By placing our self-worth in our level of desirability in terms of society’s standards we only hold ourselves back. In actuality, by striving to obtain a level of physical perfection that does not even exist, women only set themselves up for failure. The digital age subjects both men and women to impossible expectations of beauty, this hurts not only women but it hurts the entire world. This perception of women is harmful to the relationships of all humans. Imagine if all the women who have placed their sense of identity and value into their looks instead placed their self-worth into their education. The world would be more evolved and more problems would be solved because more minds would be working for the greater good. Social media can indeed be greatly beneficial to businesses and the spreading of ideas. However, there is a downside to the personal use of social networking. The growth of mass media has created a cyberspace full of narcissism, deception, and anxiety.
Works Cited
“About Us.” National Eating Disorders Association, 21 Feb. 2018,
“Magazine Issue 1 2018 / Issue 35.” The Inquisitive Mind, https://www.in-
mind.org/article/selfie-esteem-the-relationship-between-body-dissatisfaction-and-
social-media-in-adolescent.
Comments