All of my life I’ve sort of been that perfectly average, middle-of-the-road girl. I don’t tend to stand out or get noticed in any way, good or bad. Being insanely introverted, I’ve always sort of preferred it that way—plus I think it would make me a really great spy. But I’ve always been disappointed by not seeing anyone like me reflected on television and in the movies. And I think there must be a lot of us because I swear, I can never find my size on a sale rack.
I am a petite woman to be sure, but I have the furthest thing from a typical actor’s body. I am not stick-thin, but I’m also not big. I am athletic but refuse to give up pasta to get down to 18% body fat. True to my nature, I am in between.
I used to scrutinize actresses on TV to find one single person I could relate to. Was that a hint of a roll when she sat down? No, just a bunched shirt. Did her legs just touch as she walked? No, just the angle from the camera. Not that I wanted these ladies to be anything but who they were, I just wanted to find some similarities to me in at least some of them. And on the other hand were woman who owned their curves and were proud of being full-figured. Another trait I couldn’t relate to. I was smack dab in the middle with nobody who represented me.
So when I started watching the show “Girls,” I was so happy to see women who resembled me and made no big deal of it. There was no commentary on size, just an understanding that these actors represent real people; short, tall, thin, large, and, for once, everything in-between.
Then this article was sent to me and it commented on this very phenomena. Women actors are beginning to break free of the perfectly skinny or fabulously full-bodied dichotomy and owning their own shape without ever even making a point of it. This new breed of female entertainer doesn’t feel the need to fit into the increasingly unattainable Hollywood standards of beauty or spend nearly all their time explaining why they don’t. They are funny, witty, and talented, irrespective of shape or size. Some fit into the molds we are used to and some don’t. It’s a refreshing change of pace to see women accepting themselves without addressing it, instead showing through their actions that how they look is the least of their defining characteristics.
For all of us who live our lives between the two extremes, who haven’t “pick[ed] a lane” as Mindy Kaling puts it, it’s empowering to finally see people who resemble us on the big screen and maybe more so to realize that it almost doesn’t even matter at all. It’s no longer the butt of the joke not to fit in or to be different; the joke is on those who think that’s still a selling point.
Brandi is a lawyer in Denver who spends very little time actually lawyering. She can usually be found working for free at a non-profit, hiking up mountains, or bossing her husband around because he made the mistake of asking her for help with his business one time. She’s horribly technologically inept (unless people still use AIM in which case she’s a genius) and takes one bite out of every donut instead of finishing a single donut in its entirety, which is probably a metaphor for something but she hasn’t figured out what it is yet. You can read more from Brandi on her blog, Randi Nickle.
I recently watched GIRLS and I noticed the main character seemed very aware of her tummy pudge and kept pointing it out to her boyfriend. There is even a scene where she mentions being traumatized from being 5-10 pounds overweight her whole life. I will say I was pleased to see a regular body naked on the screen, but the character definitely did not have confidence in herself. I just a see a normal girl with same concerns everyone else has.
Do you watch Private Practice? I was so pleased that Sam’s (Taye Diggs) new love interest is an average sized woman. She is beautiful and it makes me so happy to see a normal looking woman be a love interest instead of the sidekick or funny friend.
Boy, things move slowly. The conversation about ‘curvy women’ on TV..is just the very beginning of – dare I say it – intelligent TV? I don’t want to sound cynical, but after a period of watching way too much TV, I’m noticing a tiny possible shift of what is being produced. I hate to say that I haven’t seen ‘Girls’..but I will. Has anyone seen ‘Call The Midwife’? One of the very main characters is a big woman. Instead of the issues of her being bigger than the other women, her character seems to be developing in other areas. Thank God. Such as her abilities as a midwife, her new marriage (ha!) and other such matters. This is a British program; perhaps that contributes to the difference in writing. Whatever. I applaud the producers for this character.
Well, let’s hear it for the new year. I wish I could somehow do my bit for decent writing and producing about women in general. We certainly have a long way to go.
We do, but I too take joy in celebrating the small steps along the way. I have heard such good things about Call the Midwife, perhaps it’s time to finally watch it!
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