All Bodies are Perfect

Ashley Graham Does it Again

This is a great example of how far Barbie has come. I absolutely was overjoyed when role model Ashley Graham came out with her own Barbie. She represents all women of different sizes, as she has become one of the most biggest influential models of the fashion industry. Along with Ashley, they released more varieties of body types in Barbie, finally showing young girls that they do not have to try and look like that one unrealistic size that Barbie has always been. The caption to the picture adds to the fact that it is OK to have these things, even though the media sometimes or always tries to tell you otherwise. This picture raises awareness because it stands for all women of different sizes, and that it is more than OK to be you.

It’s Natural, So Why Are You Ashamed?

This is one picture out of a collection of inspirational pictures about body image and this idea can be seen throughout the media. For example, Kim Kardashian removed her cellulite from her photos, even though they are something that is natural. When you have people in society that are so influential, sometimes it can reflect on how you feel about certain topics. When society is telling you that cellulite is something to hide, it makes you want to hide it too. This ultimately creates body image issues, as people are not accepting themselves and their bodies. This photo is a great illustration for body image awareness, as it says what is natural about your body is nothing to be ashamed about, EVER.

Why is Society Like This?

This picture shows what women and girls have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. They are subjected to these images that are everywhere they go, telling them how much they should weigh, or how exactly the should look. It puts unnecessary pressures on women and men, as we all know that everyone is built differently. Although, you would not know this by looking at the media alone. This picture raises awareness because it shows the harmful affects that these advertisements have on people dealing with body issues or even people who do not. People see these unrealistic ideas of what society has deemed as beautiful, which affects how people decide to view their own body.

Abs Are Not the Be All, End All

This picture displays that it is not just women who battle the issue of body image. This is directly related to the media, as every guy shown that is the “perfect guy” has abs. Women are given unrealistic views of how men should look like, as there are generally only one body type seen in movies and in all media outlets. Along with women, young boys are seeing this “perfect” man that society has created in the media. It is getting better with women in the media with more varieties of body types, but it is not with men because it is not really acknowledged as a problem. This picture raises awareness because it shows the unrealistic body that society thinks all men should have and in order to help fight this issue, it needs to become known as one and more men with different body types need to be seen in all of the media outlets.  

Your Body IS a Beach Body

I always hear “I have to get in shape for summer so that i can wear a bikini,” and no one sees a problem with this. That in order for you to wear a bathing suit, you have to look a certain way. I think the media and society has drilled this into everyone, as some people refuse to wear two piece bathing suits because they do not think they look “good” in it or they think their body will be criticized for wearing it. I’ve been seeing more and more women coming out and saying that no matter the shape of your body, it’s always a beach body. I think that it needs to be more talked about in the media because the only ones we see wearing these bikinis, for instance, are the smaller body types. We need fashion companies to showcase girls and women of all different sizes in their summer clothing, so that the stigma goes away.The stigma that you need to be this idea of “fit” in order to basically go for a swim, and that is why raising awareness of this issue is so important. Everyone should be able to go to the beach and wear what they want, without being or think their being criticized about their body.

People Come in All Shapes and Sizes

In the media, you only really see one body type. The one with so many abs that you can’t even count or the one with the smallest size. When young girls and young boys see this, they think that this is in fact the only body type that is acceptable. Anything different and you would not look like the “pretty girl in the magazine that gets all of the boys.” This picture is making a statement by saying that although you may only see one body type, there are so many more out there. Some of the other people will have the same body type, which you would never know by looking in the media. If there were more variety, there would not be so much comparison and low self-esteem. Most people do not look like the ones in the magazine, and you would not know otherwise because of how narrow-sited the media can be.

Boys Have Body Issues Too

This was one of two photos that i could find on body image issues in boys and men. I know it is a issue, but it is less talked about. As a result, it is often forgotten or not even thought about as an issue. In this photo, we see that the sign says that “it’s just as hard to be Ken, as it is to be Barbie.” The story behind being Barbie is that women should essentially look like her: the ideal perfect woman. These standards are impossible to achieve as you can see, and this photo is stating that its also happens to guys. The standards are raised high to be the “perfect man” or rather the “perfect Ken,” abs and all. 

Don’t Listen to Society

This is one of my favourite pictures of this project. It says such a strong message, with very few words. It is essentially saying that when you look in the mirror,  you may not be pretty or handsome because of how society views beauty. Beauty is seen in everything, and society tells us what beauty is. Through shows, news, magazines, and outlets like that, you observe that there is only one kind of beauty that society has created. Keeping this in mind, it is branching out. There are varieties of people now that are slowly changing this view of beauty. When we alter this view, eventually society will see everyone as the “ideas of beauty” and then this strong message will no longer be needed or so we hope. As well, you must not listen to how society wants you to look, it is your body! 

Weight is NOT Everything

In the top image of this picture, you see a girl worrying about her weight even though she has been dieting. This picture accurately shows how living your life always worrying about what you can and can not eat or worrying about a number on the scale, is not a good life. In the second part of this picture, it shows that if you stop doing this, you will finally accept yourself for who you are and you will have the freedom to do much more than what you think your weight restrains you from doing. This image accurately describes a problem that many people do face. They do not know if they stop worrying so much on their weight, that they actually have a whole life ahead of them. This could lead to better positive views about their body, combating the universal body image issue.

Love Yourself!

This picture is raising awareness to exactly what it is saying: love yourself no matter what shape you are in. I think that this is important because when people are not in the shape they want to be in, then they feel bad about themselves. Normally, people do not think their body is worth it and the only way to feel good about their body is to try and make it into the shape they think is the best shape. Along the way, people forgot to love themselves. If they fail at getting into shape, they feel even more bad about themselves. This can result in many negative things like poor self esteem, depression, and various eating disorders. I think that this quote needs to be spread across all types of outlets, as people need to always know: LOVE YOURSELF!

Perfect is So Overrated

This picture is showing how you do not have to alter your body just to fit in. In the older days, many young women would use a corset to make their waist look smaller than it is. This would harm their body as they were not built to look like that. Today, we have things like waist trainers which do the same as the corset; altering the body to have a small waist that is impossible for most body types. There are other things that people do to alter their body, so that they can look like their idea of the “perfect” person. But you do not have to conform to the new trends and the new fads that society has deemed as the only way to truly be perfect. Be your own kind of perfect, the perfect that does not harm the body you were given.This picture accurately displays this idea, as it is essentially breaking free from the “pressure to be perfect”.

Your Weight is Just a Number 

I feel like this needs to be written on every scale that is ever sold. People see the number as a negative, usually if they are not at the ideal weight they think they should be. It is indeed just a number, and i think people forget that. That you are more important than whatever number comes up and you should never feel sad or ashamed of that number. This might be easier said than done, because we live in a society that wherever we look there is someone criticizing someone about their body type. How are we going to grow as a society if we can not learn to accept every size? I think this picture accurately describes the notion that when you step on a scale, it does not matter what it says, only you matter.

What Do You Think Beauty Is?

This picture is showing that your body is not what you should be worried about, and you should really be worried about how you think of yourself. I think that is the problem in today’s society. That we think the problem is our body and that they don’t look like, for instance, the ones in the magazines or the ones in the movies. In this example, the media is getting slowly better. The media is adding more varieties of body types, but there still are areas that need to be improved upon heavily. This is mostly seen in magazines or online, the ones young girls are comparing themselves too. This picture raises awareness as many people believe it is their body that needs to change and not their negative views of it. What would help fight this ongoing issue is that more people of different body types need to be the face of our media, so that young men and women are not comparing themselves to what society thinks that beauty is.

Every BODY is a Good Body

After realizing that she does not look like the other girl in the first section, she feels bad for the way she looks. It makes her self-conscious about her body when she passes the other girl with a different body type. In the last box, i think this girl is what she believes other people view her body as. That is why when she is walking by the second girl she feels bad because she does not view her body as a “good” body, compared to other body types, and she believes that others think that as well. This results in poor self-esteem and is the main issue that girls, and people in general, face when they are dealing with this issue. To combat this, one way would be better education on this issue. Teaching young girls and boys from the beginning that all bodies are good bodies, no matter the “pant size.” This comic helps raise awareness of the body image issue, as many people of all sizes and genders face this on a day-to-day basis.