body image – The Orbital

16Nov

By Katherina HoiNo Comments

Lifestyle

Teen Body: [Your Ad Here]

By Katherina Hoi When I was 16, I had 80,000 followers on Instagram. When I was 16, I learned that my body was a commodity, an ad space, a place to project a hashtag and a brand name. Without an agency or clear direction of how to manage the online sphere, I was on my own, tens of thousands eyes watching my teenage self morph and change and twist to please. In a Pavlovian sense, I connected my neutral stance with the social platform to the positive stimulus that was free clothes, makeup, and attention. It all hinged on the maintenance of my online persona. I could pretend that my cyber self was an accurate reflection of who I was, not just a representation of everything I was not. I could pretend as if my cyber self was a true reflection, not a representation of everythi...

It’s time to commit to a loving relationship with yourself

8Dec

By Maria GreenNo Comments

Opinion

It’s time to commit to a loving relationship with yourself

Maria Green discusses the importance of body positivity in women Many young people in this country will have struggled with body image at least once during their lives. A study conducted two decades ago highlights the effects of the media on our perceived self-worth: until mid-1995, the Nadroga province of Fiji had not been exposed to Western television, and there was a distinct lack of body image issues. Three years after Western television was introduced, eating disorders emerged and many girls expressed an interest in weight loss to look more like the American TV characters. This information is nothing new, yet we still put ourselves down about our figures. We know we feel bad about ourselves because we look different from those worshipped in the media, yet often, we do nothing about...

The Guilty Monster under our Bathroom Rug

7Jun

By No Comments

Lifestyle

The Guilty Monster under our Bathroom Rug

Why do we avoid mirrors? Why do we throw away the pair of jeans that doesn’t feel right anymore? Why do we delete an uncomfortable chat with a friend? The answer is staring us straight back in the face, on the other side of the mirror. Self-denial! When we ‘sweep under the rug’ all our problems, but to be fair I’m pretty sure that’s what rugs are there for in the first place, at least I’ve convinced my-self that its for that reason that the Brits use carpets even in the bathrooms as a way to hide the dust and dirt that is unbearable to face. But, perhaps ignorance is bliss? Let’s be honest, your behaviour, even your attitute changes with a simple glimpse of reality. Lets say you notice a pimple in the mirror. Right there, staring at you from your reflection. You immediately become self ...

28Jan

By No Comments

Lifestyle

Thigh gap or booty? The choice is yours.

Through the ages, women have had to choose a path at an inevitable life crossroad. In more classic times the choice would have been between Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe. At today’s crossroad she chooses between icons such as Keira Knightley and Adele. The question of what makes the body beautiful has shaped throughout history a careful sketch of opposing traits of feminitiy, personality and more worringly inner conflict. The path that she chooses defines how she views female beauty and will ultimately contribute to the creation of a standardised definition of beauty. Shakespeare was wrong to ask ‘to be or not to be’ but rather a more accurate (and useful) modern translation would be ‘to be thin or not to care’. I don’t think I’m making a ground breaking discovery when I say that body ...