woman
...ery long time. In China, men used to break women's arches and toes and call their feet "golden lillies." This very painful experience forced women to stay at home and be housewives. The procedure also kept their feet small and dainty, which men considered beautiful at the time. Through the years, women have been protrayed as housewives. Their success has been measured by how clean their houses are, how delicious their meals are and how physically fit they keep themselves, and the media has played a big role in continuing this stereotype. The media makes women feel that if everything in their life isn't absolutely perfect, they've failed. To prove this point, look at any of the commercials aired in the time slots of female-oriented television programs, like soap operas. What you'll find is many commercials for laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, running shoes, minivans, diapers and food. What you won't find are commercials about investments, sports cars and sport utility vehicles, beer or motor oil. That is, of course, because housewives are not supposed to be interested in those things. If women aren't being sterotyped as a housewife, they're usually being objectified. Every time you see a car commerical with a beautiful, barely dressed woman, you're seeing an example of the objectification of women. The advertisers are using the woman as the object that is selling the car--the car isn't seeling itself. In my research, I found an advertisement for a palm-held computer. The only things in the ad were the model and the computer. The model was completely naked, sitting on the floor with her knees up and her head down, resting on her knees. Her arms were "hugging" her knees and in her hands was the computer. The ad does not show her face, therefore, the viewer is unable to see her identity and uniqueness. Without seeing who she is, she is nothing more than an object in the picture--she almost blends into the background of the ad. She is being used to sell the computer. What do these types of advertisement do to women? In a 1997 study, Dr. Liz Dittrich determined that "women's beauty endeavors and dieting efforts are socially reinforced. Emotional, physical and financial resources are depleted and funneled into an industry that is telling them that they are unacceptable the way they are." This is causing women to do anything they can to reach the ideal--from eating disorders to plastic surgery. Today's ideal woman is a young, white female who stands between 5'8'' and 5'10'' tall. This same woman is expected to weigh between 110-120 pounds. Ironically, only 10 percent of the world's population is genetically made up this way. In fact, a woman who falls into this category is underweight for her height. According to the USDA, women who are 5'8'' tall should weigh between 125-164 pounds, and women who stand 5'10'' tall should weight 132-174 pounds. This leads to women striving to reach an "ideal" that is unrealistic and unhealthy. Eating disorders are a very severe prob...