Erica Porcelli

Final Project - Dualing Dualisms - The Aging Body

<!— /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:”“; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} —>

Getting older? Are you ready for it?  Most women aren’t, but that’s okay! There is no need to be insecure or afraid of aging.  There are many ways for women to age naturally, gracefully, and still look natural without being afraid.  Today, we as women must take control of our bodies and stop letting society, critics, men, and other women tell us what beauty is.  We must stand up together and reject the “beauty standard” and redefine them together.  The only way to eliminate the dualing dualism of “relentlessly improved – changing and controlling the aging body” and “resolutely natural – accepting the aging body” is to accept ourselves and other women for who we are!

Becoming

<!— /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:auto; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:”“; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} —> All three women authors discussed being a feminist and the impact it had on their lives.  Hernandez talked about the affect being a feminist had on her life she once left behind; hooks allowed readers into her past and showed them what helped her turn into what she became, as did Lorde.  Different from Hernandez, Lorde’s experience happened later in life.  All three readings showed a transformation and three strong, independent women becoming themselves.

Act Your Age (Not Your Jimmy Cho Size): Women’s Aging Bodies & Sex

This week’s reading was a very relatable article.  Women today are constantly seeking the fountain of youth, almost as an obsession.  The article compared Jane Fonda and Barbara Bush, which was very interesting.  Jane Fonda is the woman who surgically enhanced her apperance, and Barbara Bush respresented the natural look.  The article discussed intriguing aspects of aging.  Seeing both sides of the idea helped me learn and understand aging in the eyes of different women.

Jane Fonda

Barbara Bush

(every)Body Hurts: Patriarchal Violence and a Culture of Sexual Violence

This weeks readings and discussion covered a very heavy, serious topic.  Violence is everywhere in today’s society.  Domestic and sexual violence is a tough subject to discuss and write about, but Bell Hook did a really good job at defining and culturalizing violence today. This week’s topic is especially difficult knowing that 1 in 3 women have been sexually assaulted. This statistic made me think about all of the women I know.

The Female Body as Medical: Control and Reproductive Justice

This week’s readings and discussion were about conterversial topics that I feel very strongly about.  Though I am set in my ways and have strong opinions, I enjoyed hearing other peoples throughts and insights on the same topics.

As my media blog I tried finding a clip from the movie, “Juno”.  It was the scene in the clinic when Juno went to get an ultrasound.  While viewing the baby on the screen, one of the supporting characters made a comment about how you could see the baby’s fingernails.  After hearing a comment like that, one stops to think about when does a fetus become a human? That video clip along with the readings and discussion opened my mind to other’s views.

O Yes: Taboos, Female Pleasure and the Erotic

After reading about Meredith Chiver’s studies I really thought about what women really want.  Before this article, as a woman, I never really thought about what I really want. The article opens with a study conducted of mating bonobos and the reaction men and women gave to it; the study showed that neither gender were aroused by the scenes.  Later, Chiver concluded that the mahority of men’s minds & genitals coincided with each other, while for women, the mind & body did not.

Patriarchial Bodies con’t.

This week’s readings and discussion brought racism in the media to my attention.  Before this week I never payed attention to the idea that white men and women are portrayed different than black men and women in varying aspects of advertising.  After class, I went home and looked through various magazines I found in my house as well as actually watched commercials on TV and saw the media’s version of racism.  It was weird to be aware of what I was actually seeing in comparison to what I used to see before knowing better.

Patriarchal Bodies: Constructing Identity & Mass Media

After this week’s readings I started paying more attention to the advertisements around me. I never noticed how many I really see each day. The media plays a huge role on society, culture, and trends, especially in populated cities like San Diego. Media makes it easy for men and women to feel inferior and wanting to have more. The media does a good job at portraying advertisements that lead to many body image issues in men and women.