American Body Culture Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibiliography Courtney, Bailey. "Supersizing America: Fatness and Post-9/11 Cultural Anxieties." Journal of Popular Culture 43, no. 3 (2010): 441-462. Courtney discusses the impact of fast food on the health of Americans focusing on the documentary film "Super-Size Me" that accuses Mcdonald as the major contributor of health effects of American people. According to the author, the obesity is threatening the health of the American society because there is likely to be an increase in the childhood obesity in the nearest future.

Thus, the author suggests that Americans should inculcate a diet culture to get thin. Carla, Rice. "Becoming "the Fat Girl": Acquisition of an Unfit Identity." Women's Studies International Forum 30, no. 2 (2007): 158-74. Carla explores the theory of feminist poststructuralist of fat that narrates diverse fat women in the Canadian context. The author documents the cultural message regarding fitness and fatness contributing to the perceptions of the fat frame being unfit for the societal values. Typically, size stereotypes have attributed to lack of physical activity and overeating.

The author recommends that women need to be creative at self-making and indulge in physical activity. Keith, Walden. "The Road to Fat City: An Interpretation of the Development of Weight Consciousness in Western Society." Historical Reflections. 12, no. 3 (1985): 331-73. Keith argues that a weight consciousness started when the bourgeoisie was in power and maintaining class distinction leading many youths to embrace the ideas of sliminess.

In the 19th century, body control was able to impose order on chaos brought about by the technological revolution which assisted in increasing growth weight consciousness. The author points out that some people have been able to prevent obesity by avoiding foods that contain sugar and starch as well as rigorously following the advice of physicians. Seng, Loh Eng. "The Economic Effects of Physical Appearance." Social Science Quarterly (University of Texas Press) 74, no. 2 (1993): 420-438.

Seng investigates the effects of weight and height in a sample of young adult workers drawn from the data between 1981 and 1982. The findings reveal that weight and height are statistically impacted on wage growth and wage levels of both male and female workers. The author concludes that the attractive people receive more cooperation and assistance from others. Moreover, employers' hiring preferences, promotion decisions and occupation success favor attractive people than non-attractive people. Parr, M Jessica.

"Obesity and the Emergence of Mutual Aid Groups for Weight Loss in the Post-War United States." Social History of Medicine 27, no. 4 (2014): 768-88. Parr explores the factors that lead to a sudden emergence of the mutual aid group with reference to obesity and rise of weight loss. Typically, a weight loss has been attributed to different variables at the United States post-war.

The author further points out that American medical authorities affirmed in the 1950s that obesity was the leading health problems in the United States prompting a recommendation for a rigorous weight control, and educating people to be diet conscious. The issues manifest a self-movement and groups that include Fatties Anonymous and Take Off Pounds Sensibly leading to the proliferation of weight loss. Thus, the weight loss movement can assist in providing a new insight into the current obesity management policies. Kirkland, Anna.

"Representations of Fatness and Personhood: Pro-Fat Advocacy and the Limits and Uses of Law." Representations 82, no. 1 (2003): 24-51. Kirkland argues that size acceptance or pro-fat rights movements have existed in the United States for decades where it has been established successfully as a political identity for a set group of fat people. Typically, fat advocates continue to rely on legal strategies and self-understanding by increasing number of successful identity groups.

However, fat litigants are being confronted by many different kinds of disputes based on lack of a united definition of the fatness. The author further believes that pro-fat advocacy in the United States seeks to take the advantages of the law to reconfigure the status of fat people towards a recognition of political identity. Greenhouse, Steven. "Overweight, but Ready to Fight; Obese People Are Taking Their Bias Claims to Court." New York Times, August 4, 2003.

Greenhouse focuses on the discrimination issue against obese citing example of how Mcdonald discriminated Joseph Connor because he was an obese provoking Connor to sue Mcdonald for not employing him because of his weight. Typically, increasing number overweight people in the United States are facing similar discrimination and law are offering little protection to address the problem. The author maintained that 27% of American are overweight or obese and the data is climbing daily coupled with the criticism against Mcdonald.

The issue makes the advocates for the overweight are lobbying to prevent employment discrimination based on the physical appearance. Moreover, courts need to change the ruling against overweight people to assist them gaining full employment in the United States. Jones, Lauren E. "The Framing of Fat: Narratives of Health and Disability in Fat Discrimination Litigation." New York University Law Review 87 (2012): 1996-2039. Jones believes that a fundamental change needs to be implemented with regard to the protection of obese people against discrimination.

The author points out that fat discrimination is common in the American educational institution, business and healthcare organizations making obese people facing employment discrimination in the society. However, the anti-obesity activists are claiming that this sort of discrimination is unacceptable because stigmatization of fat bodies often prevent obese people to live a healthier life. Tavel, Clarke Michael. "Fat Shame: Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture." Journal of Social History. Summer 46, no. 4 (2013): 1077-1079. Tavel provides the elaborate history and meaning of fatness in the American culture.

Typically, fatness is being categorized as unhealthy since the 1800s despite no supporting evidence during this period. The same general belief continued in the 19th century where some people attributed fatness as laziness, lack of self-control, greed, gluttony, primitiveness and ugliness. In the 21st century, there is a growing relationship between fatness, discrimination, and racial discourse where fat African-Americans have been identified as the most obese ethnic groups in the United States.

Based on series of problems that obese people face in the American society, series of movements have organized to alleviate the problems. For example, "Michelle Obama's nutrition campaign and Oprah Winfrey's diets" (Tavel, 1078) have tried to educate people about the important of diet in alleviating the problem of fatness. Strings, Sabrina. "Obese Black Women as "Social Dead Weight": Reinventing the "Diseased Black Woman"." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 41, no. 1 (2015): 107-30.

String discusses the stereotypes facing the African-American women because of their obesity. The author points out that many African-American women engage in behavior that put them and their families at risks. Based on the statistics, the numbers African-American women with obesity are higher than other categories subgroups in the United States. However, African-American women can still live healthier contrary to the belief of some people that white women can live a healthier life than African-American women. Primary Sources William TUDYMAN, Plaintiff, v. UNITED AIRLINES, Defendant.

(United States District Court, C.D. California 1984). The plaintiff filed an action for a violation of "Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act." The plaintiff applied for the post of flight attendants, however, was rejected because other candidates were more qualified since the plaintiff weight was above the weight program for the flight attendant job. The ruling of the case revealed that plaintiff physical condition was not an impairment under the Rehabilitation Act since the plaintiff body composition and muscular skeletal systems were not.