If the body positivity movement had to select its unofficial MVP, it would definitely be Lizzo. Known for her catchy songs like “Truth Hurts” and “Good as Hell,” this singer-songwriter, rapper, and flutist unabashedly celebrates her own body and urges fans to accept themselves, no matter their shape, size, color, gender, or sexuality. Recently, though, celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels (famous for her tenure on the reality television show The Biggest Loser) drew ire from Lizzo’s fans by expressing concern about Lizzo’s health on social media. Little did she know that she was treading on controversial ground in the body positivity movement: the intersection between size and health. Enter into this debate yourself by reading Katelyn Esmonde’s Vox article “What Jillian Michaels Got Wrong about Lizzo and Body Positivity” and answer the following questions.
In response to praise of Lizzo’s self-acceptance, Jillian Michaels declared, “Why are we celebrating her [Lizzoâs] body? ⦠âCause it isnât going to be awesome if she gets diabetes. Iâm just being honest. Like, I love her music. ⦠But thereâs never a moment where Iâm like, âAnd Iâm so glad sheâs overweight!â” Do you feel that Michaels is justified in her comments? Why or why not? Also, consider Michaels’s potential authority on the topics of health and body. Do these lend more credibility to her comments on Lizzo? Why or why not?
Esmonde (the author of the article) argues that “by publicly speculating about Lizzoâs susceptibility to diabetes or other chronic diseases, Michaels is doing more harm than good.” What specifically does the writer mean by this? How exactly does she see Michaels’s comments as causing harm (sometimes even literal) to fat people?
The author also explores scientific research that complicates our understanding of the relationship between health and weight. Explain how Esmonde argues that poor health is not always related to fatness (and vice versa), using specific examples from the text.
Lastly, the author attempts to distinguish expressing concern for someone’s health and fat-shaming. What do you see as the difference between these two things? Do you believe that Jillian Michaels was legitimately worried about Lizzo’s health or was she engaging in a type of fat shaming (or even something else entirely)? Explain your reasoning.
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re and fear with a âdifferent Woman: the new American Women, a formidable type, who is the avant-garde of he sex in the contemporary world.â3. Crehan paints a picture of personal distress for the artist, one where he must decide whether he desires the ânew American Womenâ or whether he fears them. The final and perhaps most personal response is offered by Elaine de Kooning, once married to de Kooning, Elaine was an accomplished artist and critic herself, â Bill does not feel the destructiveness or antagonism about his Women. He finds them cute and sweetâ¦To explode a woman on canvas as Bill did was an act of apotheosis and destruction. Itâs a male attitude towards all women: mothers, sisters, sweethearts, and daughters. And Bill loves the image of the floozy.â3. Elaine is quick to offer the artistâs motivations for the series, and draws a weaker but similar connection to the popularity pin up culture. Her statement is marred with the contradictions her ex-husband was known for, she says, âBill does not feel the destructivenessâ¦He finds them cute and sweetâ and goes on to say, âwhat Bill did was an act of apotheosis and destructionâ. Elaineâs final statement offers critical support to Hessâs original statement, but fails as Hess did to score or hold âaccountableâ, the artist for his actions. Few critics attached ever attached value judgments to their statements, they did not feel any sense of superiority on the subject, they simply were trying to understand and respond to de Kooningâs work. The influence of the iconographic 1950s American woman on de Kooningâs final Woman Series cannot be underscored, but to only see as a âviolent intellectual and emotional criticismâ, or an âact of apotheosis and destructionâ, misrepresents the de Kooningâs purpose behind the series, and instead offers a vague and contradictory generalizations. Art critic, Thomas Hess eqautes de Kooningâs final Woman Series to âviolent intellectual and emotional criticismâ, but fails to provide context as to w>
