Review of Stearns’ Fat History: Bodies and Beauty in the Modern West :: essays research papers

Wow, I mean, your sister, shes so fat that when she wears a yellow raincoat, people shout out, jade Your brother, gosh, hes so fat that his drivers attest says, Picture continued on the other side About your mother, well, shes so fat that when she walks in front of the television, you miss out on three commercials Im tellin ya blueThose humorous unmatchable-liners ar plainly a few of the umteen out there. In the join States today, we are obviously obsessed with weight, unless how did this cultural craze with heaviness take up? When and why, even? Are we the just now ones? Peter N. Stearns is a Carnegie Mellon history professor and dean, and in his book Fat History Bodies and dishful in the neo West, he explores and compares the weight-consciousness over the previous(prenominal) vitamin C in two the joined States (arguably the most orotund westbound country today) and France (arguably the slimmest) he withal attempts at explaining why such discrepancy exists betwe en these two countries, despite both being heavily ludicrous with body and beauty. It is Stearns stance that this modern make out against fat is actually very(prenominal) deeply rooted within our American culture, and dieting and rampant hostility toward the obese continue to become one of the underlying themes in our family today. He also nones the differences in attitudes toward the obese in both countries. He does not really believe that the french approach to obesity could so readily be adopted in the United States, but by chance recognizing a different attitude whitethorn help to later shape the views and opinions that have been formed this past century in our society.With respect to the United States, Stearns reveals that before the 1890s plumpness was profound and in fact preferable over frailness full-figures like Elizabeth Cady Stantons were linked to successful motherhood and were indeed quite fashionable. In the hug drug just before 1900, however, as we beca me to a greater extent sedentary, fashion changed, and dress sizes became standardized, greater attention was drawn toward the more oddly shaped bodies, possibly creating a new public maintenance for body weight, especially for women. Fat-controlling devices like minify corsets, dieting gimmicks such as Kissiengen water, and other advertisements for products to help against weight also began to spread during this time period. worship even came into play, as obese individuals were seen to not only be unoccupied and weak but also on their way toward what one may call fat hell.Review of Stearns Fat History Bodies and Beauty in the Modern West essays research papersWow, I mean, your sister, shes so fat that when she wears a yellow raincoat, people shout out, Taxi Your brother, gosh, hes so fat that his drivers license says, Picture continued on the other side About your mother, well, shes so fat that when she walks in front of the television, you miss out on three commercials Im tellin ya FatThose humorous one-liners are just a few of the many out there. In the United States today, we are obviously obsessed with weight, but how did this cultural craze with heaviness start? When and why, even? Are we the only ones? Peter N. Stearns is a Carnegie Mellon history professor and dean, and in his book Fat History Bodies and Beauty in the Modern West, he explores and compares the weight-consciousness over the past century in both the United States (arguably the most obese Western country today) and France (arguably the slimmest) he also attempts at explaining why such contrariety exists between these two countries, despite both being heavily infatuated with body and beauty. It is Stearns stance that this modern struggle against fat is actually very deeply rooted within our American culture, and dieting and rampant hostility toward the obese continue to become one of the underlying themes in our society today. He also notes the differences in attitudes toward the ob ese in both countries. He does not really believe that the French approach to obesity could so readily be adopted in the United States, but possibly recognizing a different attitude may help to later reshape the views and opinions that have been formed this past century in our society.With respect to the United States, Stearns reveals that before the 1890s plumpness was healthy and in fact preferred over frailness full-figures like Elizabeth Cady Stantons were linked to successful motherhood and were indeed quite fashionable. In the decade just before 1900, however, as we became more sedentary, fashion changed, and dress sizes became standardized, greater attention was drawn toward the more oddly shaped bodies, possibly creating a new public concern for body weight, especially for women. Fat-controlling devices like reducing corsets, dieting gimmicks such as Kissiengen water, and other advertisements for products to help against weight also began to spread during this time period. M orality even came into play, as obese individuals were seen to not only be lazy and weak but also on their way toward what one may call fat hell.