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There's another way of seeing this, which is about an attempt to change the kind of labours that models are forced to do in order to work or be 'seen'. Being thin isn't just a state of being for a model (or a celebrity, or an actor) -- it's not the case that only 'naturally' thin people are models. You have to work your body in various ways to remain 'fit', 'attractive', 'desirable'. You have to diet. You have to work out (but not too much, if you're female, because muscle bulk is 'unattractive' in a woman.) You have to take speed if your body won't lose weight, in order to not get hungry or whatever.
Absolutely - I think Nina and I both touched on this above, but more with a focus on the consumer of the images. Even the "naturally thin" models are still not stepping onto the catwalk in the shape that they would be if they worked 9-6 in offices and ate readymeals at home. They have to devote huge effort and resources to being not just thin but a particular kind of thin, and presumably the further away they are from "naturally" being thin, the further they have to go to achieve that particular form.
(And, of course, some biology is inarguable. Kate Moss is shorter than most catwalk models, but through some combination of management and timing negotiated a private peace with the fashion industry. Kathy Lloyd, for example, was shorter again, and had to go into glamour modeling - a discipline which has its own demands - exercise, surgery - to get the requisite form. You can't slim yourself taller - you can only _look_ taller by losing weight).
So, if you are then a woman looking at catwalk models, there's every possibility that you simply cannot do the things that would be necesary for you to be thin in that way while maintaining any sort of equivalency to the way you currently live life. That, I think, is a noteworthy issue.
And, as you say, if you _are_ a model, you're potentially still being given more leeway here as to your body type. On the other hand, if you "naturally" have a very low BMI (which, as Qalyn says, might not be an indicator of actual health), this might be an unfair restriction on your ability to practice your labour. Then again, we do impose slightly arbitrary regulations on people all the time, in the knowledge that some people might be excluded "unjustly" - a partially-sighted person may actually still be a better forklift driver than many fully-sighted people, but would still be excluded from the interview process. |
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