Lindsay's Lady Posts

My name is Lindsay White and this is my blog for WGSS 2230.

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Final Project: Pitch Perfect is Not So Perfect After All

Pitch Perfect is a movie that follows Beca, a freshman in college, and her experience in an all-girls acapella singing group.  This movie has great potential to be one of the few movies that represents women in non-stereotyped roles, and show them in real relationships with each other. However, for all the ways that Pitch Perfect works to push back on normal hegemonic structures, it continues to come up short as a movie that breaks norms or stereotypes.  I will be doing the counterpoint analysis in a point/counterpoint argument with Caitlin (her argument can be found specifically here).

Female Representation 

Beca is shown in the movie as a typical angsty teenager. She seems ungrateful for the free college education that she gets from her father. Aubrey, the leader of the group, is shown as a “type A” girl that is uptight and prude. She is bitchy and rude and only concentrates on success. Fat Amy is the fat girl. She makes jokes about her own weight, and when first introduces herself gives the explanation of name, “…so twig bitches like you don’t do it behind my back.” Kathleen Rowe, in her book The Unruly Woman: Gender and the Genres of Laughter, explains that movies like to make use of the “grotesque body.” She explains that this body “exaggerates its processes, bulges and orifices...” Fat Amy’s weight and difference is constantly targeted throughout the movie because we are taught that her being fat is a spectacle, and that her body and movements are to be laughed at. This is definitely not something new to women in movies.

Even though almost every member of the acapella group is stereotyped into a single role, almost all of them have good relationships with each other. However, they do a disservice by not pushing back with their representation of the LGBTQ community, or women as a group. The one openly gay main character, Cynthia, is shown constantly ogling a fellow group-member’s body. She is shown to not be in control of her sexual desires, and takes advantage of how dumb her teammate is. Cynthia also is shown continuing to grope Stacie, even after she blows a rape whistle. The representation of women throughout the whole movie is also that they need to beat a group of men, and earn their right to be equal. Women shouldn’t have to win competitions against men to earn some type of equality or respect; it should be expected.

The end of the movie does an awesome job of reinforcing hegemony. Beca, the main character works hard to be successful in the end. What is her achievement? Getting the guy. All Beca’s hard work with her friends and music is done to be noticed by the boy she likes so they can be together and live happily ever after.

People of Color 

If I can say one good thing about the representation of people of color in Pitch Perfect, I think it would be there is more than one person of color in the movie. And that is about it. Cynthia Rose, the African-American group member, is mistaken for a man in her first five seconds on screen. She has a gambling addiction, and is also a lesbian, which puts her into another minority group. Cynthia is also shown to have no control over her sexual desires, as she continually crosses the line with her teammate Stacie. Cynthia only has a few lines, and they revolve around her being either gay or an addict. Diane Raymond cites Douglas Kellner in her essay “Popular Culture and Queer Representation: A Critical Perspective“ as saying,  “Difference sells…The mere valorization of “difference” as a mark of opposition can help market new styles and artifacts…” Cynthia is made as different as possible to make her into a difference character. However, in doing this, the movie reinforces hegemonic structures of race and sexuality.

Open Discussion of Sex and Sexuality

Pitch Perfect has scenes about sex throughout the whole movie. It is great that women are shown talking with each other about sex and sing about it in public. However, there are a couple main issues with the discussions. First, slut-shaming by women about other women is spread throughout the whole entire movie. Aubrey, the leader of the acapella group, constantly polices the other girls about their relationships with their rivals, the Treblemakers. She makes them take an oath: “And I solemnly promise to never have sexual relations with a Treblemaker, or may my vocal cords be ripped out by wolves.” This kind of policing is something that women see daily, that their bodies are not their own to control. If they want sex, they are sluts. Aubrey on the other hand, is shown as wrong on the other side of the spectrum. If a woman is not interested in sex or refuses to talk about it, she is a prude. Secondly, the sexual desires of the women are told as “secrets.” When Stacie reveals that she has sex a lot, she tells everyone as it is a big secret. Stacie believes she isn’t allowed to have these desires, so she hides them from her friends. Jane Gerhard notes in her essay, “Sex and the City: Bradshaw’s queer postfeminism” that when women talk about their sexual experiences, in this case in the show Sex and the City, “The talk also insists on the pleasures of heterosexual sex for women...these women are shown as the subjects of heterosexual sex, not its object.” Although Stacie does this to a point, when she talks about her vagina being a “hunter,” there is still a strong objectification of her body throughout the whole film.

Although Pitch Perfect tries to show a female group being successful and different and accepting, it does a terrible job breaking hegemonic prescriptions of race, sexuality, and gender. Almost every character is completely one dimensional, and stereotyped heavily to whichever group they represent. There are steps backwards on women’s discussions of sexuality, and the women slut-shame each other. Pitch Perfect, may have some funny lines, but the problematic representations of women and other minority groups don’t have me laughing much at all. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Mini Media: Teenage Purity

The day before we watched "The Purity Myth" in class, a friend on facebook had a link to this article. I was shocked. In the article, Katelyn Campbell, a West Virginian high school student, describes how her principal threatened her for speaking out against an abstinence assembly held at her high school. Not only did this public high school host an assembly funded by a Conservative religious group, but the assembly was also full of factual inaccuracies.

I was completely dumbfounded by this. Never once in an assembly at my high school did I believe that I was being shared inaccurate information. I think it is completely wrong to push religious and “moral” beliefs on high school students, but even worse to try and push these beliefs by tricking them with false information. Not only is this unfair to students, but also makes them less knowledgeable and much more ignorant.

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Honest trailers is a series of mocking videos that take mainstream movies and television shows, and create trailers that they believe represent the movie better. These videos are hilarious, and mockingly point out many of the problems with movies.

As seen in the video, it points out how boring Bella is as a character. It also shares how Twilight romanticizes and normalizes stalking and controlling relationships. This video does a good job of showing some of the problems with the way that Twilight represents relationships and people. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Supernatural Sexuality

I can honestly say I thought Twilight was an awesome story. When I was younger, I read all of the books multiple times, and saw all of the movies at midnight. Even though I was never a “twihard” and thought it was kind of weird being on “Team Edward” or “Team Jacob”—why would I pick a team when neither of them are choosing me…? Bella can get her own man—I still enjoy the story and was excited to see a happy ending. I thought Bella was so cool, because she got to ask her boyfriend to have sex as much as she wanted. We live in a society where women are not supposed to want sex, and if they do it is on a man’s terms. Women with sexual desires are sluts, and pure women are the most desirable (as long as they are still beautiful and sexy and are automatically good at sex their first time).

  Although it is great that Bella expresses this sexual freedom, it is completely controlled by men. Edward tells Bella he won’t have sex with her until marriage, because he wants her to remain virtuous. Jacob wants to protect Bella from doing anything with Edward, and then keep her for himself. Both men are extremely controlling of Bella, because they believe that they know what is best for her and don’t think she will make the right choice. They lie, manipulate and physically intimidate Bella into agreeing with their decisions for her. This is abuse. It is framed positively in the movie, but taken out of context it is completely ridiculous. However, the way that this is abuse is displayed sexualizes violent behaviors, and sends a message that they are ok, as long as they are done with love. This is completely false.

  If we move on from looking at how awful the interpersonal relationships are, we can see that the overarching social representations are just as awful. The vampires are wealthy, and seen as sophisticated and intelligent. They are white and powerful. Any vampires of color are heavily stereotyped to their culture, and seen as interesting “others.” The werewolves are all dark-skinned. Not surprisingly, they are also poor, working-class, and animalistic. The werewolves are literal animals, and their powers are based on vampires. They can’t control their own abilities. They are very often portrayed as wild.

  Twilight serves its purpose as a fantasy story, in the aspect that it creates a space to explore sex and sexuality. However, it definitely hurts more than it helps. There are so many terrible relationships and power structures that reinforce dangerous hegemonic ideals. While the story can be enjoyed, there are many problematic elements that should not be shown in a positive light to readers and viewers.

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Relevant Reblog: Swedish Mannequins

The first time I saw this photograph, I couldn't figure out why it looked so odd to me. I kept looking at the mannequins, and then their outfits, and the background. But I didn't get it. Then a friend next to me said, "Why is that mannequin so fat?" That is when, after berating my friend for calling the mannequin fat, I realized that the front mannequin is bigger than the back one, but they are both on display in the same area, wearing the same type of clothing. 

I think this is awesome. These mannequins aren't being pushed to the "plus-size" section or being covered because they are large. They are mixed in with mannequins of a smaller size, and for the first time really being accepted as beautiful. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Relevant Reblog: Thinspiration

This is the picture at the beginning of the article Thin is Beautiful. This article is written by a model who believes she is a "thinspiration" for young girls and thinks that staying thin positively affects her life. 

This picture is the first warning sign that this article is going to be wacky. The bones don't fit inside the model. This model describes many of her views on being thin:

 I think I am very lucky to have achieved my dream, but some people and friends think I have fallen into a dangerous job that is unhealthy for my body and mind. They say I am anorexic and can see my bones. When I hear this, it only makes me happy to know I am thin...

Or even better....

Fat people are jealous. Everyone wants to be skinnier, sexier, but most people do not have enough strength and control to be thin. They are jealous of people, like me, who can...

And my all-time favorite...

It is difficult to describe how good it feels to know you have only eaten one banana or an energy drink all day, but you still feel and look great. It is a high to look in the mirror and see I have total control over my body. 

The last time I checked, getting a rush from "eating one banana or an energy drink all day" is a major sign of an eating disorder. This model is not only glamorizing her disordered eating, but she is reinforcing all the hegemonic prescriptions of femininity that have caused her to think this way in the first place. Although she is completely entitled to her opinion of what beautiful is, she is making an extremely unhealthy and unrealistic way of life seem normal and optimal to girls. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Mini Media: Pure Romance and the Grey Revolution

Fifty Shades of Grey has sparked a lot of interest recently in BDSM. Although there are a lot of issues with the way Fifty Shades represents the BDSM world, it does introduce BDSM that is very mainstream and nonthreatening. As with every craze, there are people waiting to make money off of it. In this case, it is Pure Romance. I went to my first Pure Romance party this year, and laughed at the Fifty Shades section, or as they call it “The Grey Revolution”

  Pure Romance offers many of the toys that are featured in the book, like a crop:

   A flogger:

  Nipple clamps:

  And even a grey tie:

  Even though it is obvious that Pure Romance is trying to make money off of the Fifty Shades craze, it is great that a mainstream company (as mainstream as a sex toy company can be) is offering toys that many women would easily dismiss as taboo. By offering these toys, they are giving women more options and access to explore and express their sexual desires. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Claiming Sexuality

The first time I read Fifty Shades of Grey, I could not put it down. I tore through the first and second books, and then waited “patiently” for the third one to come out (let’s be honest, I had a countdown on my computer). I love the story of Christian and Ana, just like I love the story of Bella and Edward. To me, these stories are teen novels with more sexual tension, and in the case of Fifty Shades just more sex. This is coming from a girl that believes everything in the world should be full of happiness and smiles, and in my head, the fact that these couples fall in love and get to spend their lives together is a great ending (no matter how similar these stories may be). Reading Twilight was one of the first experiences my tween friends and I had talking about our weird fantasies—in this case vampires and werewolves--without feeling harshly judged or uncomfortable. Reading Fifty Shades of Grey was the first time these same friends, a few years later, felt comfortable discussing sex and what we would try and wouldn’t try. It isn’t that my friends are prude or sheltered, but I think we all feel the pressure from society as women to keep our sexual urges or desires to ourselves. When Fifty Shades went mainstream, it created a safe and comfortable environment that allowed women of different ages to discuss their sex lives. Older women, who grew up in a generation when they were supposed be completely ignorant of sex and erotica and not have any desires except to please their husbands, now have a way to discuss erotic desires without being shamed. Younger women now have a gateway to discussing sex in a positive way, instead of being labeled sluts and whores.

  However, what I didn’t catch in Fifty Shades of Grey the first time was how unhealthy the relationship that Ana and Christian shared was. I obviously recognized that the relationship they shared wasn’t something that I would ever want to participate in, but I just thought that if that made them happy and was something they wanted that there wasn’t really a problem with it. I was sooooooo wrong. Fifty Shades shows consent in an awful light. Christian almost never waits for Ana’s consent when he has sex with her, and instead uses her silence as enough consent to proceed. Even though it is great that both Christian and Ana desire sex and voice their need for it, they fail to communicate during sex. This not only offers a bad template for consent in sex in general, but also shows an even worse representation of a healthy BDSM relationship. In the book, the BDSM relationship is linked with mental illness and violence and anger. In real life, these aspects wouldn’t be accepted in a BDSM relationship. Fifty Shades of Grey also contains every single warning sign of an abusive relationship. This is done under the explanation of love and devotion, when it needs to be recognized that abuse is abuse, no matter why it is happening. Although Fifty Shades of Grey is a great text that helps women have a platform to talk openly about erotica and their sexual desires, it fantasizes an extremely abusive and problematic relationship that offers misleading views on consent and BDSM. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Relevant Reblog: Brittany Griner

Brittany Griner, a Baylor women's basketball star and the number one pick in the WNBA draft, recently revealed that she is a lesbian. In this article, Griner describes how she wasn't worried about coming out, saying: "I've always been open about who I am and my sexuality. So, it wasn't hard at all. If I can show that I'm out and I'm fine and everything's OK, then hopefully the younger generation will definitely feel the same way." 

One of the most interesting parts of this article is when Griner was asked why there are many lesbian athletes, but men's professional sports have yet to see an openly gay player. I think it is interesting how she had no response, and that possibly the players themselves don't even see how society is affecting their expressions of their own sexuality.

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Fangirls, Fanboys, and Fandoms

To be honest, I clicked out of the first seven fan fictions I opened. I am not a humongous fan of any one movie, book, or television show, and buy into the idea that whatever happens in the final story is the end of it. However, after digging deep back into my middle school years where I was much more obsessive, I looked for fan fiction about one of my absolute favorite shows—Gilmore Girls. At first when looking for fan fiction, I was a little worried on what I would find. Fortunately, I found the perfect fan fiction story: “Ever After” which is a story about Jess and Rory getting engaged in the future. Cue 13-year old me jumping up and down while screaming.

    This story is fluff, which means that is light on content but heavy on happy emotions, perfect for someone happy-go-lucky like myself. This story takes a couple in the show that had previously broken up, puts them back together, and then creates a short story about them getting engaged. This is a huge part of fan fiction—taking storylines into your own hands and using your imagination and own likes and dislikes to control the futures of the characters. In a world that is unfortunately controlled almost always by forceful hegemonic structures, fan fiction is an outlet for subaltern voices to be created, shared, and most of all appreciated. Those who write fan fiction about the same topic create fandoms, where they can come together and talk about the text. There is no shame or discrimination in these settings; it is a safe place to express personal beliefs and ideas. 

Reimagining popular culture serves as a way to push back against hegemonic structures. In Twilight, where everyone is white and heterosexual, fan fiction can be written about Bella and her black, female lover. Whatever fans would like to imagine is possible. This is a great space to explore different issues that aren’t talked about openly in our society. Fan fiction allows normative texts to be reimagined and more greatly appreciated by those who can insert themselves into the texts. Although some authors hate fan fiction, and believe that it ruins their work, other authors appreciate the ideas and storylines that their fans create. Fandoms and fan fiction are great ways for us to push back on hegemonic structures using our own personal thoughts and ideas. 

[jazzylittledrops]

Relevant Reblog: Why Dove's "Real Beauty Sketches" Video Makes Me Uncomfortable... and Kind of Makes Me Angry

So this video started going around my facebook today, with about a dozen of my female friends sharing the link with comments like, and “Everyone needs to see this”, and “All girls should watch this,” and “This made me cry.” And I’m not trying to shame those girls! I definitely understand why they would do so. And I don’t want to be a killjoy. But as I clicked the link and started watching the video, I started to feel a slight sense of discomfort. I couldn’t put my finger on why that was, exactly, but it continued throughout the whole thing. After watching the video several more times, I have some thoughts… 

Read More

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

This is a great counterpoint/expansion of the post I made yesterday. The part that most stuck out to me was how she chided Dove for their use of implied negatives, like fat, freckles, and scars. Although I definitely noticed yesterday how there is a complete lack of representation of women of color in this ad, I did not see at all how Dove framed what was negative and positive. I really missed that part of the advertisement, and she did an excellent job of pointing this out. I think this article is a great explanation of how this ad is problematic, while still applauding some of what Dove is trying to do. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Mini Media: Trekkies 2

Trekkies 2 is a documentary that showcases loyal Star Trek fans, known as trekkies. What really sets Trekkies apart from other fandoms (seen in the last 25 minutes of this documentary) is the way that they value charity and giving. As one interviewee states, “If you are a fan, Star Trek fan, you are obligated to do something, use that fandom, and give something back to the world at large.” Trekkies work with many charities across the United States, donating their time and raising money to help others. Even the producers and creators of Star Trek share these values.

One woman shared the story of how her son was diagnosed with a terminal genetic disease, and soon lost their health insurance. Upon hearing the news, her neighbor, a Star Trek fan, raised funds to help them pay all of the bills, including her son’s funeral. As another Trekkie explains it, “they may not be able to go out and really save the galaxy, but they can help the kid next door.” Trekkies are a really great example of how fandoms, no matter how controversial they are, can make a real positive impact. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Relevant Reblog: Dove Beauty Sketches

This video is a great example of how women are taught to shame their bodies. These women, when asked to describe themselves, share how a mother told them they had a bad chin, or their faces look round. However, when others were asked to describe a woman they just met, these women described all the others best features. I think that this is a really great way to show women that they really are more beautiful than they think, and that society and others that hold them to an impossible ideal of beauty are shaming them. If we ignore the fact that most of these women are white and at least middle-class wealthy, then I think this video can serve as a great example of how all women should appreciate and recognize how truly beautiful they are.

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Race and Cyberspace

Although interracial marriage has been completely legal in the United States since 1967, you would not be able to tell today with postings like this on the Internet. What is weird to me though, is that I have never in my life heard someone complain about interracial couples in everyday life. I have seen a few funny looks here and there from older generations, but have not witnessed one comment. However, this is not the case on the Internet. Many times I have read comments, statuses and tweets from seemingly rational people that are the most sexist, racist and homophobic statements I have ever seen in my life.

The Internet did not become a space for offensive comments overnight. First, we have to look at what types of people have constant access to the Internet. Using the Internet requires a computer or a smart phone-like device. This immediately pushes out those whose can’t afford to buy a device like this or can’t get to a library or other place where this would be available to them. This creates an unequal representation of different groups on the Internet.

Even though there is not an equal representation of groups, the way the Internet is created does not make this as big of a problem as it is in the real world.The Internet can be a great space to explore multiple identities, without being stereotyped or discriminated against. This is known as the disembodied voice. The disembodied voice is an extremely positive aspect of what the Internet can be used for. However, given the anonymous component of the disembodied voice, it can also be used as a mask to hide behind on the Internet. Users can post racist, sexist, homophobic, and other offensive things without facing real world consequences. The website notracistbut.com is a perfect example of this. Also, racist tweets posted after the release of the Hunger Games is another example.

   When people don’t feel as though there are any consequences for their terrible comments, they can post them at their leisure. Also, many believe that the First Amendment gives them the right to post whatever they want online. However this is just not true, because comments that harass, offend, intimidate and hurt others are not acceptable. Harassment and offensive comments on the Internet can be and need to be policed. Just because comments can be posted without “real world” effects, doesn’t mean that they should be. Until we can figure out a way to create consequences for those who post offensive comments on the Internet, whether they are social or law-enforcement based, the Internet can not be a safe space for the disembodied voice. When it is done being misused, the Internet can be fully used as the perfect place to explore multiple identities and other information. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Mini Media: Videogames

This article describes the story of Mike Mika, who wanted his daughter to be able to have a female character lead her videogame experience. Mika was asked by his daughter why she couldn’t play as a girl in her Donkey Kong game. Mika decided to hack into the game, and have Pauline, Mario’s girlfriend, save him from Donkey Kong. This is a great example of someone pushing back against hegemonic ideals. Hopefully this idea can be used as an example for videogame developers—women being in a protagonist position. It’s not only three year olds that want to play as a female lead in games. Women of all ages would appreciate this option (especially not a hyper sexualized version of a woman). 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Videogames

I am not in anyway an avid video gamer. I can’t figure out how to aim with one little button and shoot with another, and I can DEFINITELY not figure out how to keep Mario and Luigi from falling off of Rainbow Road every fifteen seconds. I tend to favor the “press all the buttons until something happens” approach to most games. In class when we discussed “girlfriend mode” I actually got really excited because I thought I could finally get more than one kill in a game that wasn’t an accident.

  But in all seriousness, there are some real problems with the videogames that are produced.  The videogame industry is completely dominated by men, from the ideas, to the drawing, to the graphics, to the production. This wouldn’t be a problem if men treated women as equals and valued their thoughts and actions, but I think it is clear at this point that is not the case. Although women make up nearly half of video gamers, they only make up 11% of those creating the game. Unfortunately this leads to sexism throughout the games. Women are highly sexualized and usually shown just for male pleasure. They are never shown as leaders or the protagonist in the story. These games like to show us what great sidekicks they make though. If women are valued in games, they are generally only shown as royalty or damsels in distress.

  When women do participate, they are often harassed and bullied online. Anita Sarkeesian examined this, and faced an enormous backlash from those in the gaming community. In this interview, Sarkeesian discussed how she first decided to write about the tropes of women in video games. After just sharing her idea online, she was attacked. Sarkeesian believes that she is sent these messages because the online gaming world is male dominated, and with the domination comes a sense of entitlement. Therefore women involved shouldn’t voice their disagreements simply because they don’t have a right to.  Sarkeesian isn’t the only one trying to speak out against this type of harassment. The website Fat, Ugly, Slutty is a forum where female gamers can post the negative messages they receive while playing video games. These range from “u old enough 2 bleed?” to “please get cancer.” The woman who runs this site says that even though her video gaming girlfriends have grown a thick skin against these insults, she believes she should not have to. This sense of anonymity and lack of real world consequences allows this type of bullying to perpetuate.

  These negative aspects of video games need to change. Women should be equally represented in video games. Also, harassment online should have consequences that actually have effects to encourage a change in behavior. Cyberbullying in any form is extremely harmful. There are women who have begun to take steps to combat sexism in videogames, by creating their own companies with their own creative license in games. When companies can begin limiting their sexism and limited representations, hopefully more women can be interested in video games and their creation. This will help videogames continue to be a unique space to overcome hegemonic ideals. 

[lindsaycwhite-blog]

Unit Post: Wedding and Makeover Shows

This is the time to confess my dirty little secret: I LOVE wedding and makeover shows. If I had to pick top two, I would definitely go Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition, followed by Say Yes to the Dress. However, after seeing the show Bridalplasty in class, I feel like my favorite shows are completely tame compared to the distressing images I saw on this show. To start, I have to admit that after seeing a preview of Bridalplasty in class, I went home and watched all of the first season in only two days with a classmate. Although my love of trashy television sparked my interest in the show, I was completely horrified by what went on throughout the season. The girls began the show by making their “wish lists,” which is a compilation of all the plastic surgeries they believe they need to fix their appearances to be the “perfect bride” on their wedding days. The brides are competing not only to receive all the surgeries on their wish lists for free, but for the “perfect celebrity wedding.” This includes dresses, rings, flowers, and food from the top designers and stores in the country. Whenever a store is introduced, the list of celebrities that have shopped there is always mentioned. The girls are constantly judged by their appearance and how well they complete challenges that show how well they have learned the wedding skills that the wedding "experts" for that week taught them.

            There are so many things wrong with this show. To begin, this is the type of woman who calls herself ugly in the show:

    It may just be my opinion, but I can’t find anything wrong with the appearances of these women. They are very beautiful, by anyone’s standards. However, on the show it is reinforced that they are not perfect. On the makeover side of the show, women are told that all the flaws in their looks directly cause their low self-esteem. If they just had size DD boobs, or a straighter nose, years of low self-esteem and confidence problems will be immediately cured. These women who already have amazing healthy bodies are told they are still not perfect, but if they have this surgery all other women will envy them. These women also believe that if they change their looks, their husbands and families will love them so much more.           

           On the wedding side of the show, the main idea is that weddings are extremely expensive, because if you don’t have the best of the best at your wedding it will be awful. These women are on the show for surgery but also to win the “perfect celebrity wedding.” The main complaint of contestants is that they just do not have the funds for an amazing wedding. Most people do not have the funds for a cake with a $3,500.00 price tag. This show is filled with consumerist ideals that are reiterated by the contestants and host over and over again. The idea is plain and simple: with no money, your wedding is worthless. Another idea continually pushed by the show is that the wedding is all about the bride. If this bride is not absolutely perfect (in this case through surgery), then the wedding isn’t going to be good. The brides constantly say how they have to be the most beautiful person standing up there at the altar, or the day will be ruined. It doesn’t matter that this day is the day they begin their marriage to the person they love more than anything in the world, because they might have a bit of arm fat seen on the side of their dress.

            The show Bridalplasty enforces many of the hegemonic ideals that can be detrimental to women. On the show there is only one view of femininity, and if the women don’t meet this standard, then they are ugly and need fixing. The whole show is based off of the fact that the women are constantly body shaming themselves. The show is also rampant with consumerism. Certain stores and brands are obviously sold to the viewers as “the best.” Viewers are shown that weddings should have these brands, or they are cheap and of less worth than weddings that do. Women and young girls learn from these shows that they must look like absolute perfection with the high-class things at their weddings, or they will not have the perfect heterosexual marriage that is supposedly every girls dream.