Fun Fact Friday: Welcome to "Gender, Appearance, and Social Inequality," Week 1

As promised, today is the first of many FFF's dedicated to giving you a taste of my favorite UCLA seminar, "Gender, Appearance, and Social Inequality: From Evolutionary Psychology to Feminist Theory."  As I always do on the first day of an "in person" class, today's post will overview the goals of the course, review the syllabus (posted verbatim here), and squeeze in a bit of learnin' at the end.  Here goes!

Overview of course goals:

"Gender, Appearance, and Inequality" will draw on evolutionary psychology, feminist theory, and sociology, to examine “beauty bias” – the idea that physically attractive individuals are rewarded socially (through better treatment) as well as biologically (through “good genes”). This course will take an “intersectional” approach, examining how physical appearance overlaps with other, better-known, forms of inequality such as those that result from sexism, racism, ageism, and homophobia. We will discuss different attributes of appearance that seem particularly significant in the modern American context, including skin color, facial features, hair, body shape/size, and personal presentation (i.e., fashion, make-up, etc.), examining how appearance impacts people’s lives in a number of settings, including in education, in romance, in employment, and in medical treatment. Finally, will also work to critically distinguish evolutionary drives from social forces, asking how these distinct theories explaining beauty bias compliment each other.

Review of Syllabus:

In my typical seminar, I organize the course around weekly themes, as follows:

Week 1. Evolutionary Psychological Perspectives on Beauty Bias

Week 2. Sociological/Feminist Perspectives + About-Face Media Literacy Workshop

Week 3. Beauty Bias in Childhood and in Education

Week 4. Beauty Bias in Romantic Relationships  

Week 5. Beauty Bias in Employment

Week 6. Beauty Bias in Medicine

Week 7. Intersectional Perspectives on Appearance and “Eating Problems”

Week 8. Fashion, Makeup, and “Style”        

Week 9. Men’s experiences 

Week 10. Activism 

You can see the details of each week's readings and lessons on the actual syllabus, here.  On Fridays, I will cover the course material in the same order, but much more slowly!  Right now the plan is to tackle the fascinating highlights of ONE course reading or book chapter each week.  Thus, my 10-week course will be stretched out across several months.

Whenever possible I'll provide links to the actual reading.  If I'm unable to do this for technical or legal reasons, I'll do my best to illustrate the gist of it.

Good news for all: Since I'm presenting material via "Fun Fact Friday," there will be ZERO quizzes, tests, or papers!  Whoopeee!!  Attendance is optional, but enthusiasm required.  :)

My lesson posts will end with a discussion question for the "class" to tackle in comments. (Please participate!)

Bit of Learnin':

I'll spend more time exploring Chapter 2 of Stanford Professor Deborah Rhode's book The Beauty Bias: The Injustice of Appearance in Life and Law next week, but I wanted to kick things off with a quote:

 "... appearance discrimination ['''] compounds gender inequality by reinforcing the double standard and double bind for women.  They face greater pressure to be attractive and greater penalties for falling short.  [...]  As a consequence, women's self-worth is more dependent that men's on physical attractiveness.  Yet, even as the culture expects women to conform, it mocks the narcissism of their efforts." (Rhode, p. 44)

This passage made me instantly think of the "effortless beauty" many of us strive for.  We carefully apply makeup to look as though we aren't wearing any.  Or, when complimented on a carefully chosen outfit, we say things like "Oh, this old thing?  I just threw it on!" So here is my discussion question for you, building from this passage: 

Have you ever felt pressured to downplay the time, money, and work that you put into your appearance? How does this shape your behaviors or beauty routines?

Very First "Haute Hump Day" - Baby Steps in Bright Green

Here begins my first Haute Hump Day, with an outfit I see as a gentle "baby step" up, from my usual basic t-shirt & jeans + cardigan.   How did I get here?  Well, I upgraded each piece of my "fashion slump" uniform.  Walk before you run, right?

Thus, my typical basic t-shirt was replaced with a drapey, raw-edged, ruched number; my everyday bootcut jeans were swapped for a dressier pair hemmed long enough to be worn with a favorite pair of white patent-leather wedge heels (instead of my typical plain leather Birkenstocks or boat shoes).   Admittedly, I couldn't help but top it all off with one of my (many) drapey cardigans, which is no upgrade from the fashion slump, but sure felt comfortable and - I think - looked cute!  Ingrained habits are hard to break, but I'll try to push myself further next week.  I adore the green + blue combo!  Thoughts?

Green ruched t-shirt, Anthropologie clearance rack - similar-ish

Dark Wash, Mid-Rise "Hidden Hills - Stream" Bootcut jeans, Paige (via TJMaxx)

Necklace, one-of-a-kind creation by Linda Thelin 

Shoes, Coach (via TJMaxx) - similar

Blue Cardigan (below), Splendid (via Nordstrom Rack) - similar
**Photo Credits: Lisa & Geoff @ The Goodness Photography & Design**

Gotta love the bright-and-shiney siding of my neighborhood bio-diesel station, Dogpatch Biofuels...

A gift from my sister, Hanna.  Crafted by our family friend, Linda Thelin.

Oops!  I forgot to take a picture of my shoes.  

These are not my feet, but these are identical to my shoes!

And finally, my go-to navy cardigan showed up for another turn around the dance floor.

So there we are, folks!  I'd love to know your thoughts.  In particular - any suggestions for how I might "upgrade my upgrade" next week?  :)

Writing Begets Writing; Yes, You Can ALL Audit My Course via FFFridays; Announcing "Haute Hump Days"

This is a picture of my (3-year-old) soul flying through my nimble fingertips.

Writing is a frequent passion but sometimes burden of mine.  When inspired, my soul flies through my nimble fingertips and I feel somewhere in between witty and immortal.  When uninspired, I'd rather be shopping.  If I could write only when I felt like it, and indulge in my other passions (I do have a few more than shopping) the rest of the time, I'd feel quite fulfilled but would be entirely unemployable.  I'd also miss out on the unexpected joy and satisfaction that results from writing something inspiring, when uninspired.  This happens frequently enough to convince me that it's worthwhile to write habitually, even when I'm "not in the mood."  

So, writing habitually is exactly what I've been doing recently, but not so much for this blog.  Instead, pushing my book manuscript forward has dominated my time, focus, and energy.  After writing (or attempting to write) for hours at the office, coming home to lofty blogging goals has felt impossible and unfair to my brain.  (I am suddenly reminded of a punchline on Friends about the presumably lousy sex lives of heterosexual male gynecologists!)  

But I have good news to share.  While the book manuscript still looms, I've missed the easier idea flow of blog-writing.  I've missed the creativity, and the directness of expressing an emotion I'm currently experiencing rather than figuring out how a previously-experienced emotion might fit into a larger story arc.  I've missed the attainable-on-a-daily-basis sense of accomplishment that comes with clicking "post".

Over the past few weeks I've caught myself daydreaming about blog posts when I "should have been" plotting my plot structure or editing my edits.  I've actually told myself NOT to blog, even when feeling inspired.  I told myself that I needed to "save" my writing for the book.  This was well-intentioned, but dumb and unnecessary.  Writing begets writing.  Inspiration begets inspiration.  My different writing outlets ought not be compartmentalized.  So today I'm rebelling and it feels great.  I didn't write a word of "book" and I'm staying up past my bedtime to blog.  I'll figure out the rest tomorrow, but in the meantime, I want to share two of my blog daydreams.  You'll be seeing the fruits of these plans in the coming days and weeks.  Here goes:

1) Several weeks ago I described the course I'm teaching at UCLA, on the topic of "Gender, Appearance, and Inequality: From Evolutionary Psychology to Feminist Theory".  I'm in the midst of teaching the class right now and it's a whole-heck-of-a-lot-of-fun.  I can't get enough of the topic, and I'm inspired by how my students interpret the material and share their own experiences.  Several of you enthusiastically inquired if it would be possible to take the class online, or to audit the material.  I can't actually give an online course right now, but I can offer smidgebits of the material and themes through this blog.  Therefore, for the foreseeable future, "Fun Fact Fridays" will be structured around my course syllabus.  I'll share the syllabus itself, and as many readings as I can manage to, within copyright laws.  Knowledge is power, and should thus be shared! :)

This is my favorite image from our engagement
photo session.  I've worn this exact outfit in slightly
 different color combinations about 150 times since.

2)  I've been in a fashion slump.  I have always (okay, since the last few years) been a jeans & t-shirt + flowing cardigan kind of gal (see image on the left).  When I have a long day of writing planned, I aim to dress comfortably.  The aforementioned outfit fits the bill too a "t"(shirt), but I've basically been wearing different color combinations of the same outfit, on autopilot.  I'm not ashamed to be dressing for comfort and convenience, and I'm actually proud of my efficiency (sooo much better than obsessing!).  Yet I've missed the creativity and pride that accompanies more mindful and expressive dressing.  I truly believe that fashion can be body-positive brain-food when it captures your senses with color, texture, and pattern. To reconnect with these lost elements, I'm committing myself to "Haute Hump Days".  On Wednesdays, beginning this week, I'm going to spend a little extra time putting together an outfit that makes me happy.  I'll (gasp) share a photo of myself in said outfit, and write about it.  After a year of not looking at myself in the mirror or in photographs, it will be interesting to share up-to-date pictures of myself so publicly.  I'm not particularly interested in inviting snarky comments about my body or fashion sense, but I trust you all to keep it fun and fabulous.  Sally at www.alreadypretty.com is my inspiration here.  

Okay, that's all I've got for now.  Sleep awaits.

Have YOU ever found yourself in a fashion slump?  Did you care?  If yes, what did you do to push past the slump?

Best Positive Body Image Group Activity Ever!

This is my drawing of me.  Yeah, I know I've got talent!

This Monday I had the students in my "Gender, Appearance, and Inequality" seminar participate in the BEST POSITIVE BODY IMAGE GROUP ACTIVITY EVER!!  I've done this activity each year since I started teaching this course, and it never fails to inspire me.  I think I've mentioned the activity once before, but I feel like it deserves it's own post.

Here is the activity, and how/why it is so amazing.  Note: unlike a lot of Positive Body Image activities, this one works best when done with a group!

1) Everyone in the group is given paper and a pen or pencil.  If you're feeling fancy, colored pencils, markers, and/or crayons are fun too!

2) Each person in the group draws a picture of her body on the piece of paper.    It doesn't matter how realistic or artistically appealing the picture is.  This is a time to NOT be a perfectionist.  (See my beautiful drawing, above, if you're worried that you aren't adequately artistic for the task!)

3) After drawing the picture, each person makes a list of all the things she likes/loves/appreciates about her body.  This "things I like" list can be infinitely long, and MUST contain at least FIVE things.  Each person can also list ONE (but not more than one) thing she doesn't like about her body.

4) After 10-15 minutes of artistry and list-making, each person shows the group her picture, and explains her lists.  It's important that each thing on the "like" list is explained, instead of just stated. (i.e., "I like my eyes because they are the same color as my mom's eyes...")

5. After everyone has shared, the activity is over.  Participants are encouraged to keep their picture + list, and to remember what the activity felt like.

Okay, okay, I know what you're thinking.... this is way too simple to be AMAZING AND LIFE-CHANGING.  But, guess what: it is!  Here's why:

As women, we're trained from childhood to believe that it's socially inappropriate to love our bodies, or at least, to admit that we love them. We're taught, instead, to bond with each other over our hatred of our bodies, and various different parts of our bodies.  If a friend starts complaining about "feeling fat," we know the rules: tell her she isn't fat, and then find some part of your own body to complain about.  Similarly, when we're complimented on our looks, we're taught to "be modest" and say lame phrases like "Oh, this old thing?!" or "Oh, thanks, but I really wish I had your butt/boobs/face/hair/feet/hands/etc." 

Sometimes we even talk badly about women who seem "full of themselves," and we're definitely scared of being talked badly about for being "full of ourselves."  We may admit that we like one - maybe two - things about our looks, but the list of things we claim to hate is usually super-long.

This means that, as women, we spend a lot of time hanging out with other women while we all pick apart our bodies, piece by piece.  We may compliment each other, but we don't compliment ourselves, and we talk a lot about feeling jealous of other women because we wish we had "her thighs/boobs/butt/stomach/hair/etc."  We almost NEVER spend time with other women while we all talk about things we like about our bodies.  (FYI, The only cases in which women have told me they've talked positively about their bodies in a group setting, was if they were participating in a classroom activity, or an eating disorder recovery therapy.  In other words, positive body talk doesn't seem to happen "naturally.")

Anyway, this Positive Body Image Group Activity creates an instant community of women talking positively about their bodies.  Even more amazing - it's always a room full of women with different looks, different backgrounds, and different ideas about their own "beauty." Even though we all have a pretty good idea of what beautiful is "supposed" to look like (i.e., tall, thin, white, blonde, big boobies, etc.), every woman has a unique list of "liked" features that typically vary from the "ideal".  What I mean by this, is that instead of only hearing girls say things like "I like being tall, thin, white, blonde, with big boobies" (or only liking the things about themselves that are on this list) women talk about loving features that make them unique and special.  Here are some examples from Monday:

Curly hair, 

straight hair, 

strong broad shoulders, 

freckles, 

my mom's eyes,

big eyes,

single-lidded eyes

interracial features, 

tiny hands, 

little boobs, 

nice boobs, 

being tall, 

being short, 

being perfectly average height, 

full lips, 

naturally pink lips, 

flexible toes, 

light skin, 

dark skin, 

clear skin, 

"innie" belly-buttons, 

strong legs, 

butt dimples, 

crooked pointer-fingers, 

curvy hips,

and more....

I've read about (and tried) body positive activities in which I've made a list of things I like about my body.  That's all good fun, but it's the open sharing of these lists that makes this particular activity so ... radical.  It may feel a bit awkward to read your own list out loud, but it feels so incredibly good and right to hear other women reading theirs.  I even found myself adding features to my own list that I hadn't thought of (i.e., butt dimples!), after hearing them described by my students.  As for hearing women talk about one they they don't like so much.... more than anything this seems to help the participants feel more comfortable sharing all the stuff they like.   The activity would feel a little fake and forced if we were only allowed to talk about the good stuff.  Also, for the record, I think it's okay and healthy, to have mixed feelings about our bodies... it's just awesome to imagine that the mix could be mostly positive instead of mostly negative!

What would YOUR list look like?

PS - In my wildest change-the-world dreams, I'd love for this post to show up in online searches for "positive body image activity."  I really believe in it that much.  So... if there's ever a time to cross-post, link, or track-back, please do it for this post!