Both articles have a common subject of
obese people in the United States. I find this subject very compelling and
intriguing. I feel it is important to get outsiders views on this topic, and
let the readers know from studies of obese people and how they are treated. It
states that people are more prone to attack obese people. With vicious words
instead of helpful words of encouragement. They go with how people can
discriminate against obese people, in modern society.
In the first article America’s War on theOverweight, it gives a sort of progressive stance. How we as a society evolved
into how obese humans are looked upon. While in Understanding the Negative
Stigma of Obesity and its Consequences, it goes more into depth with social and
personal obstacles. Kate goes back to the time of World War I, how people of
the time viewed obese people as gluttons, and holding on to food from others.
The first early on recordings of obesity didn’t start until World War I.” Actuarial tables began to connect weight
and shorter lifespan, and cookbooks published around World War I targeted the
overweight”. (Kate Dailey Newsweek). She explains the early onset, and what
people began to believe why obesity was happening. Rebecca and Kate both state
the perception of being overweight is that of someone that is lazy, unhealthy,
and weak. People view it as a lack of control to ones self. There is a
widespread belief that being fat is controllable. While that view is seen by
most, Rebecca goes into how people can have medical conditions that cause them
to be overweight.
In
Kate’s article it states most common people to have negative attitudes to fat
people are women says Marlene Schwartz, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University.
“younger women, who are under the
most pressure to be thin and who are also the most likely to be self-critical,
are the most likely to feel negatively toward fat people”. (Kate Dailey
Newsweek). She gives research showing how women are most cruel. Rebecca tends
to focus more on the daily life affects from people. A
lot of people will forgo healthcare says Rebecca Puhl. “Healthcare can easily become a negative and shaming
experience for obese patients because of weight stigma. “ (Understanding the
Negative Stigma of Obesity and its Consequences Rebecca Puhl, PhD).
To many obese people going to the doctor can have a negative emotional effect
on them. People that are seen to be able to control their weight are viewed
harsher says Rebecca Puhl. “obese individuals are more likely
to be stigmatized if their overweight condition is perceived to be caused by
controllable factors compared to uncontrollable factors” (Understanding
the Negative Stigma of Obesity and its Consequences Rebecca Puhl, PhD). People
that don’t have a medical condition are more stigmatized than those with.
Both
the authors take a pretty strong stance, of how fat shaming has become a major
problem in today’s society. They feel like it is our job to help these
overweight people out, by not being to critical and mean towards them. We need
to uplift them and help them in fixing their obesity, not shaming them and
making them have more emotional damage. The way that obese people are getting
treated in society is not beneficial for the individual being shamed. They need
words of encouragement to help them. I feel like both authors did a good job of
pointing out their strong points and using plenty of research to show their
backed stance.
Kate Dailey and Abby Ellin, and Rebecca
Puhl all write about how todays modern culture views obese people, Dailey and
Ellin tell about this war in a much more neutral way. While Puhl takes a lot
more, harsher side of the problem with discriminatory problems towards obese
people. I feel as though Rebecca speaks on a more bias term. I prefer Kate’s
article because there seems to be more substance. While Rebecca takes a strong
side for the obese people. Rebecca speaks on a more biased term in her article.
She makes the obese people out to be victims and that society needs to change,
not the obese people to fix their weight if possible.
Articles cited.
.Kate Dailey America’s
War on the Overweight (Bedford Guide Page 549)
.Rebecca Puhl Understanding
the Negative Stigma of Obesity and its Consequences (Puhl R, Brownell KD. Bias, discrimination, and
obesity. Obesity Research. 2001;9:788-805)
