“Wow you are soooo skinny” is the saying that every thin person is accustomed to hearing, as if they were not already aware of their own weight. While it may seem a tad petty for me to complain about something that some may take as a compliment, it is frustrating when the tone of the person telling me is one that is rude.
One of the biggest flaws in the society that we live in is
that we, for whatever reason, have become use to bashing the physical appearance
of the people around us. You’re probably
thinking, “Wow this isn’t breaking news,” and you’re right, it’s not. However, as
the world changes, so do the beauty standards in which we hold ourselves to.
For decades, thin was in. Men and women were obsessed with being active and trying new diets in order to become skinner. While this has not completely faded away, present day is much different. Everywhere you look, whether it’s on TV or the internet the woman we have come to idolize are pretty curvaceous. While this is all good and well, society has now become obsessed with having that Kim K butt or Scarlett Johansson chest.
So now the people that have a little less “meat on their bones” are targets for body shaming.I’m in no way saying that any type of body shaming is in any way acceptable. On the other side, overweight individuals are still also targets for rude comments, which is never OK. However, I feel as if people think that making fun of someone for the fact that they are skinny is more socially acceptable and politically correct because society never looked at being thin as a necessarily negative thing. For example, anyone would think that going up to an overweight individual and saying to them that they shouldn’t finish their meal because they’re fat is extremely rude and shocking. But many people wouldn’t think twice about saying to someone that is thin, “Wow you’re not going to finish that? No wonder you’re so skinny”.
But what if that person doesn’t like being skinny? Even better, what if they don’t even mind being skinny, but their body has a fast metabolism, so they don’t even have a choice in the matter? People view being thin as if it’s purely a choice. As if the possibility that they are naturally a skinny person isn’t even a factor. Many thin individuals are more than well aware of society’s new standard of wanting a new perfect curvaceous body, and many of them may want them too. So the next time you question someone that's skinny why they're going to the gym, (because apparently skinny people shouldn't be physically active?) or why they didn't finish everything that's on their plate, remember that they may not have a body that they're happy with either.
