Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters: The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body

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Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters: The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body Page 41

by Courtney E. Martin

ignorance about, 170, 172-75

  ignoring of, 136-37

  importance of, 12

  influences on attitudes about, 11-13

  interpreting our mothers’, 48-53

  and legacy of feminism, 45-46, 48-53

  listening to own, 261, 281

  and Martin-father relationship, 65-67

  and mother-daughter relationship, 76-77

  mothers as hating own, 45-46

  negative feelings about, 263

  obsession with, 6-9, 31, 69, 251-52

  and obsession with perfect girl, 211

  and perfect-girl talk among teenagers, 85, 86, 88-89, 90-91, 97

  and perfect-girl tendencies, 15, 16

  during post-college years, 230-49

  and power, 12, 142-43, 153, 182

  as projects, 208

  “set points” for, 170

  split between soul and, 214

  time spent obsessing about, 6-7

  viewing of other women’s, 280

  you as your, 30-31

  See also specific topic

  Boevers, Jennifer, 213-14

  Bordo, Susan, 8

  boundaries, 112, 171, 198

  Boyle, Lara Flynn, 127

  boys/men

  and attractiveness, 146-66

  bad, 101, 142

  bingeing for, 154-57

  in college years, 213

  and “does this make me look fat?,” 161-65

  and eating disorders, 146, 147-48, 163-64

  and father-daughter relationship, 68

  honesty of, 164-65

  and “hot girls,” 154-57

  ideal, 166

  influences on attitudes of, 12

  and “lad mags,” 146-47, 150

  and new stories, 284

  and perfect-girl talk among teenagers, 91-93

  and pornography, 151-54

  pressures on, 146

  and sports, 197

  women as symbol for, 155

  and young boys’ club, 131-38

  See also sex

  “brain drain,” 30-31

  breaking points, 260, 266, 267-68

  Britz, Jennifer Delahunty, 44

  Brown, Foxy, 138

  Brown, Murphy (fictional character), 50

  Brumberg, Joan Jacobs, 26, 27, 28, 31

  Buddhism, 256-57

  bulimia nervosa

  and body as holy war, 265

  books/writings about, 10

  for boys, 154-57

  and breaking points, 266

  during college years, 220

  and confrontation about eating disorders, 224-25

  and control, 184

  definition of, 21

  diagnosis of, 21-22, 24

  in DSM, 22

  and father-daughter relationship, 73, 74, 75

  and “fat in the right places,” 30

  and group bingeing, 1

  health aspects of, 239, 281

  and history of eating disorders, 27, 29

  and legacy of feminism, 45

  and men, 164

  and new stories, 278-79, 281

  and perfect-girl talk among

  teenagers, 86, 87-88, 91

  and pop icons, 123, 124

  during post-college years, 239, 246

  praise and support for, 253-55

  and race/ethnicity, 29, 129

  reasons for, 278-79

  and relationships among bulimics, 259-60

  and sex, 113, 114

  and spirituality, 256-58, 260, 266-67

  and sports, 192

  and starving daughters, 21

  bulimiarexia, 23

  burlesque, 187-88, 187n

  Bushnell, Candace, 16

  BUST magazine, 54, 285

  Cagan, Joanna, 194

  career mobility, 233-39, 241-48

  Carney, Vaughn A., 44

  Carpenter, Karen, 27-28, 74n

  Cary, Lorene, 32

  Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 105n, 114n, 171n, 174, 198

  Chante, Roxanne, 138

  Chastain, Brandi, 194

  Chernin, Kim, 8, 167

  children

  and feminism legacy, 41

  obesity in, 177

  rebellion of, 40

  chronic fatigue syndrome, 50

  Clarkson, Kelly, 123

  clothes, 5, 93, 245-46

  Clowney, Marna, 220

  coaches, 202, 206, 252, 260

  cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), 277

  college years, 210-29

  and all-women’s colleges, 218-19

  early months of, 215-17

  eating disorders during, 211-12, 213-14, 217, 218-27

  “freshman fifteen” during, 97, 115, 212

  friends during, 215-17, 218-19

  “geek as chic” during, 178

  and identity, 216, 217, 221

  men during, 213

  perfection during, 213, 214, 216, 218-19, 221-23

  spirituality during, 251

  spring break during, 212

  starving daughters during, 214

  Colorado College, 223

  Colorado Springs, Colorado, 17, 37

  competition

  among anorexics, 259-60

  among friends, 219, 259-60

  among teenagers, 86-91, 92

  and bonding among teammates, 205-6

  intergenerational, 244

  in Martin’s childhood, 41

  and new stories, 275

  in post-college years, 244

  and sports, 196, 202-6, 207

  composing a life, 230-31, 249

  condoms/contraceptives, 102, 105n, 106

  control

  and body as currency, 11

  and college years, 217

  and fat, 171, 180

  and first time for deprivation, 217

  and new stories, 275

  and perfection, 6, 183-84, 211

  and plastic surgery, 248

  in post-college years, 236, 239-41, 248, 249

  and spirituality, 259, 261, 266, 267-68

  and sports, 198, 201

  corporate rap, 121, 133, 133n, 138-39, 140

  corporate world, 148-49, 234, 243-44, 275, 284-85

  counseling, 114

  culture

  and eating disorders, 3, 26

  machismo, 135

  of mystification, 285

  and new stories, 275-76, 280

  pop, 9, 40, 121-27, 129-30, 146

  See also corporate world

  Daddy’s little girl, 62-67

  Dads and Daughters, 61, 63

  Dalton, Sharron, 180

  Danes, Claire, 127

  dating, 2, 144-45, 161

  Davis, Kathy, 285

  Davis, William, 47

  dependence, 79

  depression, 20, 27, 35, 41, 50, 80, 110, 238

  deprivation, 18, 60, 61, 62, 217, 275

  development, human, Gilligan’s views about, 32

  diagnosis, art of, 21-26

  Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), 22, 23

  diet pills, 174, 254, 254n

  diets

  during college years, 211-12, 216

  contradictions about, 171

  costs of, 174

  and eating disorders, 23, 29, 174, 219

  and extreme makeovers, 167-68

  fad, 29

  and legacy of feminism, 51

  and new stories, 281, 285

  and perfection, 5, 89, 167-69

  during post-college years, 240, 248

  and self-talk about fat, 178-79

  yo-yo, 174

  Dittmar, Helga, 221

  diuretics, 129

  divorce, 59-60, 61

  DJs, 134-38

  “does this make me look fat?,” 161-65

  double bind, 39

  double consciousness, 221-23

  double standard, 103, 108, 110, 111

  drugs, 116n, 136. See also Adderall

  Duke University, Women’s I
nitiative Study at, 5, 216

  Duncan, Karen A., 113

  eating

  at Barnard, 210-11, 227-29

  in front of people, 96

  and media, 110

  over-, 111

  and sex, 109-10, 111

  under-, 192, 199, 204

  See also diets; eating disorders;

  food

  eating disorders

  abbreviations for, 85-86

  acknowledgment of, 277

  birth of modern, 27

  books/writings about, 8, 10

  during college years, 211-12, 213-14, 217, 218-27

  combinations of, 23

  as comedy, 147

  confrontations about, 224-27

  culture as influence on, 3, 26

  diagnosis of, 21-26, 30

  early age of, 64

  emotional and psychological

  aspects of, 200-201

  as epidemic, 170, 272

  and father-daughter

  relationships, 58, 60, 62, 64, 72

  and gender, 3

  and health, 180, 239, 281

  history of, 26-30

  as holy war, 262-66

  and legacy of feminism, 35, 47-48, 51

  masking of, 219

  and men, 146, 147-48, 163-64

  and new stories, 271-88

  obsession about, 29, 30

  and perfect-girl talk among teenagers, 80, 85-86, 88

  perfectionism correlated with, 28

  praise and support for, 253-55

  predictors of, 222

  prevalence of, 1, 2, 4-5, 10-13, 29-30

  and race/ethnicity, 82, 127-31, 220

  as religion, 252-55

  silence about, 220-22, 253

  as sin, 267

  as social problem, 3

  and socioeconomic class, 82, 263

  symptoms of, 21-26

  too smart to have, 221-27

  treatment for, 200-201, 276-78, 279

  See also diets; fat; obesity;

  thinness; weight; specific disorder or topic

  EDNOS (eating disorder not otherwise specified), 23

  empowerment, 188, 195-96, 203

  equality, 37, 44-45, 143

  Equal Rights Amendment, 37

  Erikson, Erik, 32

  everyday life, 261, 262, 282

  exercise. See fitness/exercise; sports exhibitionism, 141

  extreme makeovers, 167-68, 170-71, 285

  failure, 214, 269

  faith, 256, 266, 267, 275

  fantasies

  and fat, 177-81

  and new stories, 272-74

  superwomen as, 40

  “fast girl,” 65

  fasting, 192, 198

  fast track, 251, 267-68

  fat

  causes of, 175, 176-77

  as disability, 173

  and empowerment, 188

  fantasies about, 177-81

  and fat bitch, 184-89

  health risks of, 177

  and identity, 177

  ignorance about, 171, 172-75, 176-77

  perceptions of, 1, 170, 177, 185

  and race/racism, 177-79, 186

  in “right places,” 127-31

  self-talk about, 177-81, 186, 188

  and sex, 187

  as social death sentence, 173

  and starving daughters, 188

  and willpower, 176, 179

  See also eating disorders;

  obesity; weight

  “father hunger,” 203

  Father Knows Best model, 62-63

  “fatherless” generation, 72

  fathers

  attitudes about puberty of, 63-65

  and characteristics of perfect

  girls, 17, 18

  coded language of, 59, 70

  conflict between views of

  mothers and, 78

  and Daddy’s little clone, 75-78

  and Daddy’s little girl, 62-67

  denial by, 73

  distancing between daughters and, 69-72

  and “father hunger,” 72-75

  as good guys, 59-62

  guilt of, 60

  ignorance of, 71-72

  influence of, 9, 12, 55, 56, 253

  and legacy of feminism, 43-44

  as neutral third parties, 68

  parenting aptitude of, 60-61

  and perfection, 69, 76, 77

  as risk-takers, 61, 66

  as role models, 55, 76, 78

  role models for, 60

  shallow intimacy relationships with, 57-58

  silence of, 69, 70

  and sons, 63

  and sports, 202

  and weight, 60, 62, 64, 69, 70

  See also parenting; parents

  Faulkner, William, 230

  fear, 78, 161-65, 275, 276, 280

  Felice, 2, 177-79, 180

  femaleness

  image of, 61

  as restriction, 61

  feminism

  American Dream of, 231-33

  black, 139

  and body as holy war, 265

  and burlesque, 187n

  double bind of, 39

  and empowerment, 196

  and fat, 171

  “first wave,” 36

  goals of, 4, 37

  and “good girls,” 36, 42

  and hip-hop, 139

  Martin’s attempt to find, 53-54

  and new stories, 275, 277

  nonfeminist, 42

  perfect girls as daughters of, 18

  “second wave,” 36, 37-40, 42, 47, 54

  and sex, 108

  and superwomen, 39-40 “third-wave,” 54

  unintended legacy of, 32-55

  in Vietnam era, 36

  and weight, 43-44

  Fey, Tina, 80

  films, 80, 105

  fitness/exercise

  and blame for weight, 175

  epidemic of disordered thinking about, 3

  and extreme makeovers, 167, 168, 170

  and history of eating disorders, 28

  and ignorance about fat, 177

  and legacy of feminism, 51

  and obesity epidemic, 174

  obsession about, 3-4, 6-7, 93

  over-, 51, 192, 199, 204, 261

  and perfection, 5, 29, 93, 167, 168, 190

  in post-college years, 240-41

  and self-worth, 2

  and spirituality, 252-53, 270

  statistics about, 198

  and thinness, 182

  See also sports

  Flockhart, Calista, 127

  Florida State University, study by, 129

  Fonda, Jane, 45, 47, 78

  food

  abstinence from, 184

  and black holes, 5

  as enemy, 158, 255

  epidemic of disorder thinking about, 3

  and fathers as good guys, 60

  and legacy of feminism, 51

  obsession about, 6-7, 8

  and self-worth, 2

  as sin, 252, 253

  and spirituality, 270

  as weakness, 261-62

  See also fat; obesity; weight

  Franklin, Aretha, 124

  freedom, 141, 275, 285

  “freshman fifteen,” 97, 115, 212

  Friday, Nancy, 46

  Friedan, Betty, 36, 54

  friends/friendships

  during college years, 215-17, 218-19

  competition among, 86-91, 92, 219, 259-60

  complexity of girls’, 80

  confrontations with, 224-27

  and guilt, 115

  and love, 165

  meanness among, 83-86, 87, 89

  and new stories, 283-85

  power struggles among, 82-86

  and sex, 105, 114, 119

  See also specific person

  Gall, William Withy, 26

  Gareth, 2, 168-69, 172-73, 175-76, 183-89

  Gaynor, Gloria, 125

  gender norming, 44

  generosity, i
mportance of, 244-45

  genetics, 1, 3, 12, 21, 171, 175, 176, 280

  genital HPV infections, 114, 114n

  Gilligan, Carol, 32-34, 79, 80, 134, 271, 274

  Ginsburg, Lynn, 268-69

  Girls Inc., 91, 96. See also Santa Fe teenagers

  goals. See aspirations/goals

  God/gods, 251, 252-55, 263, 264, 269

  “good girls”

  characteristics of, 34

  and feminism, 36, 37, 42

  Gilligan’s views about, 32, 33-34

  and legacy of feminism, 42, 55

  mothers as, 5, 40, 55

  perfect girls as different from, 34

  and perfect-girl talk among

  teenagers, 80

  as superwomen, 40, 55

  “good guys,” fathers as, 59-62

  Gordon, Mary, 98

  Grae, Jean, 138

  Greenfield, Lauren, 201

  group therapy, 201

  guilt/shame

  and American Dream, 232

  and black holes, 4

  and body as holy war, 264, 265

  and career mobility, 233-34

  and characteristics of perfect girls, 18

  during college years, 221

  and confrontation about eating disorders, 224-27

  and control, 184

  and diagnosis of eating disorders, 23, 26

  and double consciousness, 223

  and fat, 179, 187

  and father-daughter relationships, 56, 60, 64

  and friends, 115

  and legacy of feminism, 54

  and new stories, 277, 279, 281

  and obesity, 171

  and overeating, 110

  and perfection, 5

  in post-college years, 233-34, 249

  and power, 143

  and prevalence of eating

  disorders, 29, 30

  and sex, 103, 106, 118

  and spirituality, 260

  and starving daughters, 20

  and thinness, 182

  about weight, 2, 3

  Gyllenhaal, Maggie, 127

  halo effect, 16

  Hamm, Mia, 198

  “handing it all up,” 266-70

  happiness, 16-17, 93, 165, 179, 180, 196, 236, 258

  hard work, 44, 197, 284

  harmful attachment, 257

  health

  as balance, 170

  and diets, 184, 281

  and eating disorders, 180, 239, 281

  and gender issues, 50-51

  and obesity, 170, 173, 174, 177

  and plastic surgery, 248

  in post-college years, 239

  and sex, 114, 114n, 118

  health care systems, 277

  Heather, 252-53, 255, 259, 260, 262, 266-67, 268

  Hill, Lauryn, 138

  Hillman, James, 278

  Hilton, Paris, 124, 160

  Hinton, Megan, 90, 148-49

  hip-hop, 102, 131-41, 133n, 135, 137, 138-40, 142, 146

  holy war, 262-66, 279, 280-81

  honesty, 158-61, 164-65, 268, 276, 280, 284

  hoodia pills, 254, 254n

  Hornbacher, Marya, 8, 167

  “hot girls,” 154-57, 158, 178, 245

  Howard, Sarah, 221

  humility, 237-39, 279-81, 283

  humor, 158, 222, 283

  Hunter College, 29

  icon dolls, 122-25, 126

  identity

  body as, 181

 

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