The idea of criss-crossing and contradictory scales against which acceptability (is that the right word?) is judged emerged in my head as I wrote the article and it seems pretty obvious to me. But the more I’ve thought of it the more I’ve realised that this is a radical concept to some. We’re told so often that there is a single ideal image of a woman that we’ve forgotten that actually there are many many ideals all contradicting each other. Oddly, this may partly be the effect of campaigns about body image.

I think that men (in general) have it much easier, not because people judge differently, just because most do know that the ideals for them are all contradictory, and most expect only to be liked by selected people.

On the role of blogs in this environment – I’d think that they offer:
- a real opportunity for women to write and be known without being seen (being free of the effects of beauty myths). Could we see leaders emerging this way?
- a way for like minded people to make contact where it is clear what beliefs the other person has,
- some occasional opportunities (as with your blog) to experience body disparagement free zones without having to be part of active campaigning for ‘fat acceptance’ or the like.

And as a role for the internet generally, there seem to be a very gradually increasing number of positive and well photographed images of ‘real’ womens bodies (I’m not thinking of pornography here). On the whole these are new territory – not something that most people have ever seen before, and I’d like to think they might become a very powerful antidote to the filtered selection of images available elsewhere. (By the way I love the photos on this site).

I really liked your article. I’ve always liked Debora Burgard’s suggestion you quote ‘that women might choose to ask those around them to observe a “body disparagement free zone” perhaps in a work place”.

Obviously, I believe that there are many kind of beauty. And there are lots of different kinds of beauty that get appreciated by some folks.

But I also think that awareness of the dominant cultures very narrow definition of beauty is important. The realization that it is a fantasy that excludes most of us, is important in recovering from the damage done by that the constant barrage of those “beauty” images and messages. I think that depending on how you look and where you are in the culture you can receive the message differently.

Wendy,

Those are all good points. As a photographer I find the photo question particularly interesting. When I did my book Women En Large: Images of Fat Nudes, I briefly considered having the photographers photo be a nude of me. It seemed like a good way to give some equality to the model/photographer relationship.

It was immedialtely pointed out to me by my friend Carol Squires that I would be setting up a comparison between me and the women in the photographs since I’m thin. She was really right and I didn’t do it.

I’ve been working hard on the Japan exhibition stuff tonight. Stopped to answer these comments. So I hope I’m being clearer than my mind is feeling.

For awhile now I’ve felt that when you put a photo of yourself online you subject yourself to an “internet gaze” wherein others feel fully entitled to comment, compliment, or correct you. Doesn’t that influence the way we represent ourselves? What happens when, intentionally or otherwise, your body—and/or what you do with it, or don’t do with it, or did several years ago (like, say, Weight Watchers)—is up for discussion? I’m just tossing this all out here, but these are the kind of questions I’d like to see addressed at the panel.

When we speak about women and body image there is a risk that we promote the idea that society has a scale (i.e. a measure) against which to measure beauty – with ‘good’ at one end and ‘bad’ at the other. Actually, I don’t think this is true – there are a multitude of scales, and getting higher marks on one invariably means getting lower marks against another measure.

What this means is that if we aren’t careful then campaigns about body image can actually add to the problem rather than improving things (because we promote the idea of there being a single measure).

I’d really like comments about whether I’m right (or wrong) about this (through my email details on the ‘Inclusion and Social Justice Articles’ site, not distracting from this excellent blog). Look for the ‘You’re looking good’ article on the ‘on-site articles’ part of http://www.isja.org.uk (or link directly to the article at http://www.isja.org.uk/articles_1_bdfreezone.html )

Looking forward to taking to you in the panel phone conference soon.

Nancy’s static image concept is interesting. It makes me think about how different would be in we visualized ourselves in movement rather than in our “static” mirror reflection. I wonder how many of us, when we close our eyes, see ourselves as we look in the “morning” mirror rather the in motion. I think I may do that myself and certainly, I live my life mostly “in motion”

I’m excited to be on the panel with Laurie and Yvonne and Jenny. If you’d like to know about our backgrounds, read our blogs…

I do have a question about the inclusion of Wendy McClure on the panel. I have read Wendy’s book and catch her articles in each edition of Bust I receive. She is a very smart, witty and clever writer. But, her book details her attempts to lose weight with Weight Watchers, and her site details her Weight Watchers chronicles and other diet-related attempts to lose weight. Wendy may not have bought into the diet mantra as other women, but she’s still following a diet plan which has been shown to have a very, very low effectiveness rate for sustained weight loss.

I don’t know who the other panelists are, but would be interested in learning their backgrounds also.

These are all great and helpful comments. Thank you!

And thanks for the introduction to the clearly fabulous Elaine Magee webmd.

I just read Carmen Van Kerckhove, who blogs at “Racialicious.” She wrote a body image blog recently – “Are eyelids the no. 1 beauty concern in the Asian community?” {http://blogher.org/node/20130}

It’s a great example of a broader body image conversation.

I really hope this discussion keeps going.