The introduction of the 2D-self versus the 3D-self plays an important role in the representation of how we view ourselves when we look into a mirror. In class last week, we discussed how we do not have a conceptual understanding of our bodies in the 3D. Therefore, we come to see ourselves wholly by the 2D representation, which incidentally distorts our own self views as well as separates our bodies into parts of a whole.
The cultural environment in which we are placed constantly affects the images we see when we look into a mirror. The media challenges the idea that seeing is believing. When we are surrounded by images of thinness, we perpetuate these into our own daily lives until we believe that we too must conform to these standards. In this way, Karen Dill illustrates that we must look beyond mediated interpretations of race and gender because "We are being given rather a prepackaged, mass produced vision and that vision can be very much influenced by media producers' desire for profit above other motives" (Dill 89). Naomi Wolf in The Beauty Myth explores this same sentiment. Both Dill and Wolf examine the role that the media has played in distorting what is seen in the mirror of societal representations of beauty and self worth. When we take a look into the mirror we are given the prepackaged and mass produced distorted image in return. The root of the issue lies in the lack of choice. In having the choice, people would have the ability to choose how to present themselves as a 3D-self rather than conform to the standards of beauty set forth by society and the mediated world that bombards us daily.
Wolf says, "Most women, in their guts, would probably rather be, given the choice, a sexual, courageous self than a beautiful generic Other" (Wolf 282). It is this generic Other that Susan Bordo deems the "genetic celebrity" in that "simply because of what she looks like, she achieves a glittering status, she's the incarnation of the Prize" (Bordo 286). This genetic celebrity is the mediated image of what beauty should be. Because of this, the mirror image that many women see has been altered with a high list of expectations. Women believe they must have the perfect hairstyle, clothing, makeup, and even skin complexion in order to achieve the genetic celebrity status. In the process, they become a generic Other because they all possess the same prepackaged and mass produced characteristics.
In Proactiv commercials, both celebrity spokespeople as well as ordinary users talk about their experiences of clearing their skin using Proactiv. At the end of this particular Proactiv commercial, Jessica Simpson says, "It's one call away just to better yourself - to better your skin." In this we can see how the skin becomes the representation of the whole self. By clearing your skin with a product such as Proactiv, you are also bettering your inner self. In this manner by fixing your skin you are altering both the 2D self in pictures as well as the 3D self in the way you react to other people. This is one of the dangers that Wolf ascribes to in that "the problem with cosmetics exists only when women feel invisible or inadequate without them" (Wolf 273). The Proactiv commercials illustrate the skin acting as a symbolic boundary between the self and the world. Benthien claims that "it is the skin itself, which stands metonymically for the whole human being" (Benthien 17). When the skin and the self are intrinsically connected, feelings of inadequacy develop if the image that people see in the mirror does not equate to the images seen in glossy magazines or movies. According to Wolf, "Advertising aimed at women works by lowering our self-esteem" as we can see from commercials such as Proactiv (Wolf 276).
From these attitudes of needing perfection whether for our skin or other body parts, Susan Douglas exposes what Wolf suggests about advertising in that "women's magazines, movies, and TV shows have been especially effective in alienating women from their faces and bodies" (Douglas 268). This disconnect, therefore, presents itself with false images when we look into a mirror. The media plays an important role in determining how we react to our own bodies. Obsession with thinness, clear skin, designer clothing and all things on the high expectation list tend to affect how people react to those who do not meet these high demands.
In a recent blog post for Marie Claire, blogger Maura Kelly explained her views on seeing what she deems "obese" people in the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly.
"So anyway, yes, I think I'd be grossed out if I had to watch two characters with rolls and rolls of fat kissing each other ... because I'd be grossed out if I had to watch them doing anything. To be brutally honest, even in real life, I find it aesthetically displeasing to watch a very, very fat person simply walk across a room — just like I'd find it distressing if I saw a very drunk person stumbling across a bar or a heroine addict slumping in a chair."- Maura Kelly, "Should 'Fatties' Get a Room? (Even on TV?)"
The blog post itself illustrates the narcissistic personality that characterizes the American media world in that Americans as insecure and self-loathing beings are constantly searching for approval from others to find self worth (Douglas 248). The blogger Maura Kelly, a former anorexic, wrote an apology for the blog post, but the damage had already been done. Kelly's language expresses her opinion that the weight of these characters came to represent them as people. In the same way that skin becomes the point of fixation in the Proactive commercial, this blog post also illustrates how the weight of the 3D self that is presented in the real world can come to define a person. Classifying people as "fat" or "thin" leads to a distortion of the mirror self because the weight comes to represent the person. Just the same way, Diane Israel in the documentary Beauty Mark comes to define herself in terms of her weight and her anorexia. At one point of the film, she says, "I couldn't see myself as a whole being." Her thinness became her form of control and power in what Wolf calls the "underlife" of "self-hatred, physical obsessions, terror of aging, and dread of lost control" (Wolf 10). We become possessed by the parts of our whole bodies that we are most unhappy with, leading to this sense of self-hatred.
This underlife of self doubt and worthlessness allows for shows such as TLC's 10 Years Younger to gain popularity. People are literally put on display in a box, and people guess how old they are. This show illustrates the dangerous side of being defined by parts of the whole and the distortion of our 2D and 3D selves as a result. In this episode, Dawn had been defined by the front teeth she lost as a child. It is not until her teeth are fixed by an expensive procedure could Dawn feel like a whole person worthy of being deemed "the new Dawn." The notion of transformation leads to a slippery slope when it comes to looking beyond the beauty myth and become a whole person. It is only when Dawn's teeth are fixed that she feels like a whole person, can face society, and even look into the mirror as a new and improved Dawn.
The mirror is a powerful tool - one that can boost self confidence or one that can destroy or distort self-value. The reflective surface of the mirror reflects onto our 2D and 3D-selves. We incidentally are led to see what society and the media deem good enough to see - the clear skin, a thin physique, straight teeth. The line between seeing what's real and what's imagined is beginning to blur even more.
When you look in the mirror what do you see?
Works Cited:
Benthien, Claudia. Skin: On the Cultural Border Between Self and the World. 1-36.
Bordo, Susan. The Male Body: A New Look at Men in Public and in Private. 281-298.
Dill, Karen. How Fantasy Becomes Reality: Seeing Through the Media Influence. 88-117, 132-140.
Douglas, Susan. Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female with the Mass Media. 245-268.
Kelly, Maura. "Shoulf Fatties Get Their Own Room? (Even on TV?)." Marie Claire. October 25, 2010. < http://www.marieclaire.com/sex-love/dating-blog/overweight-couples-on-television >.
Israel, Diane producer. Beauty Mark: Body Image & the Race for Perfection. 50 min.
Wolf, Naomi. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty are Used Against Women. 1-19, 270-291.
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