Are Fat Men More Socially Acceptable Than Fat Women?

I'm starting to feel like it is socially acceptable for a man to be fat, but not a woman.  You hear comments like, "he's a big boy" about fat men.  But you hear something different about fat women.  You hear things like, "she really let herself go", or "she'd be really pretty if she lost some weight".  Are we okay with men being fat, but have something against a woman being fat?  After all, women are supposed to be beautiful, right?  And being fat isn't seen as being beautiful.  I wonder if there are gender differences in what is acceptable in terms of being overweight or obese.  Have you had any experiences with this?

The Divorce of Lady X

I've been into watching some old movies lately, and tonight I happened to watch "The Divorce of Lady X", starring the late Lord Lawrence Olivier.  Differences between men and women are commented on often in this movie.  I just heard Olivier's character rant about how women want equality but they don't want the responsibilities that go along with that.  Of course this movie was made in I believe 1938, and certainly a lot has changed since then.  But it is very interesting to get a sense of how gender differences are viewed at different times.  And certainly I think we can say that women have taken on many responsibilities in spite of their failure to achieve true equality with men, at least in terms of salary and career opportunities.  I expect to see that change over time as more and more women continue to fill the work force.  Many of those women also find a way to be a great mom at home in addition to being successful in a career outside the home.  Now more than ever, women have it altogether.  Hopefully someday all of society will recognize and accept that women truly are already equal to men.

Man vs Man, Woman vs Man, Woman vs Woman

I have a lot of interest in human relations.  We have a lot of stereotypes about "most men" being like this, and "most women" being like that.  Certainly these characteristics cannot describe every man or every woman since everyone is so different.  I think it is so fascinating how different people can be, how genetics and environment shape us.  We are each so individualized, so unique.  And in spite of this, it seems that there are some strong generalizations (stereotypes) that sometimes seem to apply to the majority.  But what impact is made from other factors?  Most notably, I have a very big interest in determining some generalized roles in homosexual couples.  I am not saying that I want to create stereotypes or that I want to classify any type of person into any sort of rigid code.  Having grown up in heterosexual relationships both inside and outside of my family, I can certainly use my experience to come to some general conclusions about how men and women work together, the roles they assume with each other and in a family and in society.  But since I have not really had any experience with homosexual relationships, I do not have the same understanding that I have with heterosexual relationships.  I do know some couples who are homosexual, but I am not close enough friends with them to be able to make any kind of general observations or to come to any kinds of conclusions.  Of course you can't really come to any kind of good and reliable conclusions based on the observations of only one or two couples anyway.  But I am interested in knowing how (or if) the roles of man/woman or male/female apply in a homosexual relationship the way they do in heterosexual one.  There are particular traits or characteristics that we tend to associate with the male figure in a relationship, and with the female figure in the relationship.  What happens when there is no male in the relationship, or when there is no female?  Does one of the females take on the role of the male in the relationship she has with another woman?  Or is this a completely different type of relationship, one that does not have the traditional roles that we see with heterosexual couples?  I think, based only on things I've heard but not directly observed, that there tends to be a male/female component even in homosexual relationships.  I have often heard others describe this as, "she's the one (of the two females) that wears the pants (i.e. is the male figure)", etc.  If that is true, if humans adopt a male/female role even in a male/male or female/female relationship, isn't that interesting?  It makes you wonder what the purpose of that would be.  If you are a female attracted to a female, why would you need a male-based role model in that relationship?  It seems that perhaps it is our view of these things as "male" and "female" when they are not truly "male" and "female".  It seems that we would have to realign our thinking away from the gender stereotypes that have been drummed into our heads ad infinitum.  It suggests that we would need to look at tasks and behaviors in a way that is not linked to gender.

I hope I have not offended anyone with my open speculation about this.  I am honestly interested in this and certainly did not intend to upset anyone.  And I certainly welcome any comments about how you feel about this subject, and any other subject discussed here!

Chick Flick vs Man Movie

My son and I were discussing movies today.  My son wanted to have my mother watch the movie, thinking she would enjoy it since it was in part filmed in her hometown.  I thought she probably wouldn't want to watch the whole thing.  My son wondered why not.  I explained that it wasn't a chick flick.  That got me to thinking.  Why was I assuming that she wouldn't like the movie just because she is a woman?  And why am I even encouraging that type of thinking with my son?  Do you ever catch yourself applying a gender stereotype like I did?

Cat Woman

I watched "The Dark Knight Rises" with my son again today.  I was thinking that the Cat Woman in that movie was rather unrealistic.  Of course it is a superhero movie, so how realistic is the movie anyway?  But to see this young, thin little thing high-kicking and slamming grown men all over the place just seemed over the top.  So is it my bias toward an antiquated stereotype that makes it impossible for me to believe that a woman can overpower a man?

Beauty is the Least

I loved that Disney princesses cartoon that I posted yesterday.  It is so true.  What is the message to young girls?  Your physical attractiveness is what defines you, it is what makes you strong?  You would think that the princesses would have evolved into something more modern . . . someone who is a strong woman, one who is self-assured and independent, one who doesn't have to get the guy to be happy.  I always sort of felt that "Belle" of Beauty and the Beast seemed to be more that way, independent and self-assured.  But it seems when it gets right down to it, the role models for girls do seem to send the message that it is beauty that is favored and all that matters.  It looks like very little has changed, at least with Disney princesses.  Beauty is appealing of course, but it is truly the least important thing about a person, unless you are talking about internal beauty.  We like external beauty so much though, we are apparently willing to push aside any thoughts of internal beauty.  As long as the princess is physically beautiful, what more do you need?

Great Cartoon from gender320.blogspot.com/2011/11/disney-stereotypes-for-villains

http://gender320.blogspot.com/2011/11/disney-stereotypes-for-villains.html