Stigma and Shame by https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7 The creation of the 'socially invisible' en-us 2018-08-27 04:34:59 UTC 2024-06-19 21:39:19 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-uploads.storage.googleapis.com/302167299/6b965592a81322f094167e4ebb0fa191/soical_stigma.jpg Fatness NOT bravery olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276483908
"Fatness is sometimes still seen as grotesque, especially when you get to a certain size. I have had people cringe whenever I’ve described my body as fat. I have had designers get insulted when I ask if an item comes in my size or even mention the F word to them. It’s still a word that causes frissons of discomfort, even in communities designed to fuck with or play with the dominant paradigm" - Sonya Krzywoszyja (taken from the below article)
With this quote, Sonya touches on the power of language to define and create certain discourses about bodies.

]]> 2018-08-30 05:46:50 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276483908 Padlet Description olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276492111 This padlet will focus on the theme of stigma and shame. I believe that this theme allows me to draw upon various topics we have covered during the first half of the semester, looking at what happens when a body violates societal norms and expectations. Those who have modified bodies, disabled bodies, non-conforming gendered bodies, diseased bodies and fat bodies (to name a few) fall at risk of becoming socially ‘invisible’. As Mary Douglas states, the body is ‘a natural symbol, which different societies use to make classifications between what they consider to be pure and polluted, clean and dirty” (As cited in Howson, 2013, 96). This padlet will focus on such notions of stigma and shame, and how distinctions between purity and impurity signify a social and moral order. ]]> 2018-08-30 06:45:45 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276492111 Fatness cont. olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276805968 Sonya's article really struck a cord with me, as it was a great insight into the multi-layered levels of discrimination one can face. Within her queer minority group, Sonya thought that her fatness would be something that was less focused upon, less stigmatised because she was around other stigmatised individuals. However she revels that "Youth, beauty and fuckability is a commodity the queer industry trades on as much as the mainstream industry does ...
I don’t want to be told I’m “brave” for daring to exist in the body I live in. I want, “Cool outfit! Where did you get it?” or “Your hair is amazing!” without the subtext." ]]> 2018-08-31 04:20:11 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276805968 Gay and Fat olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276806602 2018-08-31 04:26:12 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276806602 The Ageing Body olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276815862 I found the below article posted via the New York Times' Facebook page, and the connected screenshots are from the comments that followed. This opinion piece shines a light on how a societal stigma can reduce one's body to invisibility. As Richardson and Locks (2014) purport, the "quantification of age is deemed important within public spaces (especially transport systems) thus suggesting that socio-legal structures view the regimentation of bodies’ age as the most important of social identifications. In this respect, ageing is not only a cultural identification but social qualification” (42). With age can come a shift in social order, from visible to increasingly invisible. Reading the comments, a common theme pops up. A lot of the women contest this notion of invisibility, as it is conceptualised as a loss of social qualification, approval and inappropriate comments from men. If one of the side effects of this stigma is to be released from such pressure, then bring it on some say. ]]> 2018-08-31 06:26:17 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276815862 The Ageing Body cont. olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816631 2018-08-31 06:31:27 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816631 The Ageing body cont. olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816794 2018-08-31 06:32:40 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816794 The Ageing Body Cont. olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816962 2018-08-31 06:33:41 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276816962 Menstrual Taboo olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825524 The connected images are an inspection of how media has dealt with the taboo topic of menstruation throughout history. The older advertisements use words such as 'personal hygiene' to indirectly hint at the topic of periods, and use images completely unrelated to menstruation. This then shifts to using images of sanitary items, but with blue liquid in the place of blood, so as not to offend consumers. Women have long been stigmatised for their periods - something that for the majority is a natural bodily experience. A new wave of unapologetic and truthful representations of menstruation can be seen in the below advertisements, aiming to remove the stigma and shame associated with something that is a reality for many of us. As Douglas (2003) outlines, blood represents a sort of disorder due to its connection with disease and war. The expulsion of bodily fluids violate boundaries and disrupts a moral and social order, creating a menstrual stigma in many cultures. Thus, the admission or reference to periods are regularly subdued or simply alluded to. Sophie Laws (1990) believes that menstruation is both unaccommodated  for and actively concealed. She proposes the concept of 'menstrual etiquette' which governs to whom and what women can say about the topic.
“For Laws women internalise shame because pollution beliefs stem from male disgust, and hence they conceal menstruation in order to protect men from having to confront the female body” (The Body In Society Chapter 3 The Civilised Body, 2013, 106). ]]> 2018-08-31 07:28:54 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825524 Menstruation olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825638 2018-08-31 07:29:48 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825638 olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825668 2018-08-31 07:30:03 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825668 Menstruation olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825690 2018-08-31 07:30:10 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825690 olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825738 2018-08-31 07:30:30 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276825738 Menstruation only for 'women'? olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276826018 I added this picture as I think it's a great look at how the dialogue around menstruation can take a more intersectional approach. If it's not visible in the image, the arrow off the label 'women' interjects with the sentence 'or any menstruating human' to include those who menstruate that might not identify as 'female' or 'woman' - thus helping to shine a light on this multi-layered stigma. The adverts for the Thinx underwear are really open and inclusive - here's a link to some more: https://www.google.com.au/search?q=thinx+adverts&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiN_fCE-JjdAhVBS7wKHWpGCsUQ_AUICigB#imgrc=i8f-yz6ZNUZ_0M:]]> 2018-08-31 07:32:30 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276826018 Menstrual intercourse olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276827219 This advert seeks to shatter another menstrual stigma, which is the discussion surrounding intercourse whilst menstruating. Whilst it's quite subtle, it's a start right?]]> 2018-08-31 07:41:00 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276827219 olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276827392 2018-08-31 07:42:26 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/276827392 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051109 2018-09-01 04:54:48 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051109 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051137 I have chosen the connected images as they all touch on Foucault's notion of 'technologies of the self' - the endeavours of humans and the tasks they undertake to alter themselves, so as to achieve a certain level of happiness or to fit into a certain social order. Arising from the notion of technologies of the self is the concept of 'normalisation'. There is a huge push for individuals to ‘normalise’ themselves by working on themselves. This is governed through the threat of shame – one must avoid shame by employing technologies of normalisation (such as going to the gym, dieting, wearing braces to fix your teeth, having your ears pinned back etc). Technologies of self-esteem benefit from consumption i.e self help books, podcasts, products, medical procedures and gym memberships. technologies of self-esteem are a direct example of self-surveillance. ]]> 2018-09-01 04:55:38 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051137 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051192 2018-09-01 04:56:45 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051192 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051334 2018-09-01 05:01:32 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051334 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051395 2018-09-01 05:03:36 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051395 Technologies of the Self olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051478 2018-09-01 05:05:36 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277051478 Abortion - My Body My Life olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277053857 This is a video introduction to a British exhibition and campaign called "My Body My Life" that showcases women's experiences of abortion in an open and quietly powerful space. It discuses how this topic is still discussed with hushed voices, aiming is to make women aware of the prevalence of abortion (one in three women in the UK will get an abortion in their lifetime), and to 'humanise' and de-stigmatize it. ]]> 2018-09-01 06:09:06 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277053857 Abortion in South America olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277054210 Women's bodies have long been thrown into the political spotlight. The issue of legalisation of abortion in many South American nations almost always has a religious and political undertone to it. The shame of unwanted pregnancies often drives women to access illegal abortions in nations where rules do not permit safe access to such services. The political conversation surrounding Abortion in Argentina, for example, takes women's bodies out of the private sphere and places them into the public sphere - where individual and private choice is stripped in place of state-based regulation. Thus, women's bodies are used as political tools of public control.]]> 2018-09-01 06:19:26 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277054210 Disability Shame olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277055624 An opinion piece from an Australian Paralympian, Dylan Alcott, discussing the shame often felt throughout the disabled community. Whilst Dylan embraces and is proud of his disability, he believes that others often shy away from admitting that they are disabled - because when they do, society slaps a label on them and enforces certain restrictions. But, as he says, disability does not discriminate, and it should be celebrated and accepted as it is something that could happen to anyone of us. For able bodied humans, the stigma surrounding disability stems from a sentiment summed up by DeMello (2013):
“At some point, unless we die too soon, every abled-body person will themselves be disabled.  That’s one reason why those who are disabled are so stigmatised; because they remind us of our own vulnerability” (30).  ]]> 2018-09-01 06:39:47 UTC https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277055624 References olivia_epworth https://padlet.com/olivia_epworth/h4r4aslfkke7/wish/277857783 DeMello, Margo. 2014. Introduction: Theorizing the Body, in Body Studies: An Introduction. Routledge: Oxford. 3-20
 
Douglas, Mary. 2003. Natural Symbols. London: Routledge.
 
Howson, Alexandra. 2013. The Body In Society. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Polity.
 
Richardson, Niall, and Adam Locks. 2014. Body Studies. London: Routledge.
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