Obesity in Western Culture Essay

Within our constantly evolving and ever-changing Western world, what is deemed as being degenerate has shifted and adapted to suit the norms and values of conjunction at large. Thus, deviancy fuel be defined as behaviour that violates the normative rules, understandings or expectations of social systems. The issue of corpulency has become increasingly prominent within Western society and is deemed as being deviate due to its wide unacceptance throughout society. In applying the Functionalism perspective of diversion on fleshiness, the ways in which society attempts to handle and understand this issue is further outlined and explained.Obesity is a term used to describe automobile trunk weight that is much greater than what is considered the kempt range. Individuals who argon orotund have a much higher amount of body fat than is healthy or recommended. Adults with a body mass index (BMI, calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) greater than 25 k g/m2 but less than 30 kg/m2 are considered overweight (Insel, Turner, Ross, 2009). The ways in which those who classify as orotund are perceived and portrayed by society are, within a Western society fixated on image and obsessed with reaching physical perfection, often negative and highly critical.The media plays a crucial role in shaping the ideas and values our society holds. As we are constantly bombarded with images of idealistically thin celebrities, it becomes evident that those who do not fit this normality are excluded from social acceptance and pressured into losing weight and fitting in. A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald stated that objet dart there was sympathy for underweight models because of possible eating disorders, those with overweight body shapes were blamed for not doing nighthing to lose weight (Gray, 2010).It is evident here that although there is some negativity urrounded with being underweight, super-thin models and celebrities continue to be represented as satisfying throughout the media, whereas those classified as obese are rejected from mainstream society and blamed for not taking the initiative to lose weight. As we concentrate more on what is considered to be physically attractive, we lose sight of the variant biologic, genetic, and noncontrollable etiological factors (Puhl, Shwartz, Brownell, 2005) that relate towards corpulency.Thus, negative stereotypes and stigmas are placed upon the obese, further streng then(prenominal)ing heir label of deviancy. In a recent conduct conducted by Yale University, the perceived social consensus on attitudes toward obese people was tested. Three experiments were bring forthd towards educating the participants on the issue of obesity in hope of reducing the bias stereotypes and stigmas our society has successfully created towards the obese. (Puhl, Shwartz, Brownell, 2005).The study describes how the consensus attitude towards obesity prevents the reduction of stigmatizing a nd excluding the obese from mainstream society as people in general feel a sense of security and approval in following the beliefs of the majority. Thus, if we as a society take greater acknowledgment in the causes of obesity and maybe even empathize towards those labeled as obese the idea of obesity as being a form of deviance could potentially shift throughout the long term. The ways in which the obese are negative stigma held towards obesity by society at large. According to David F.Williamson of The New England Journal of Medicine (1999), it is crucial that doctors encourage greater weight liberation towards obese patients as obese people are twice as ikely to die from any cause as people of normal weight. Society then not only recognizes obese people as being obscene, lazy, slothful and gluttonous (Adler, Adler 2000) but also as ill, and in a sense, ignorant towards the consequences of their execrable state of health. As modern technology continues to develop and treatment options further increase, obesity becomes more and more deviant throughout society.Procedures such as liposuction are becoming more available, with surgeries having increased 21 5 percent since 1992 (Naisbitt, Naisbitt, Philips 2001). Although ndergoing plastic surgery has not yet attained complete social acceptance, procedures such as liposuction reduce the consequence of the obese being labeled deviant due to their status. In contrast, the way obese people perceive and view themselves is largely wedged by the constant discrimination and criticism carried out by society at large.Although it can be said that in the presence of other obese people there is a greater sense of acceptance and understanding, the self-representation of obese people is generally negative and painful. According to an article on ABC news, i obese female stated hat (you feel like) you have no right to exist as you are. Feeling as though this body is an twist body (Stark, 2004). The majority of obese people o ften view themselves as outsiders to the social norms of image and feel as though there is a civilization of blame (AN, 2008) constantly against them.There have been studies undergone which illustrate the reluctance amongst obese patients to seek preventive health care services due to the embarrassment of their weight, and perhaps even the feeling of being criticized by physicians (Fontaine, Faith, Allison, & Cheskin cited in Puhl, Shwartz, Brownell, 2005). This clearly shows that obese people themselves are not content within their condition and recognize their deviant label within society. Although they inevitably feel the pressure to lose weight, the embarrassment of yet again being Judged and criticized by healthcare professionals prevents them from doing so.The Functionalist approach to deviance can be applied to obesity in many ways. Functionalism was developed by Emile Durkheim and illustrates how the institutes within society function and curb social equilibrium. A functio nalist analysis of eviance begins with aspect at society as a whole rather than focusing on the individual. It looks for the source of deviance in the nature of society rather than the biological explanations or psychological nature of the individual (Covington, 1999).In this regard, applying functionalism to obesity becomes difficult as obesity is initially a personal health concern. Both biological and psychological aspects contribute towards obesity which then labels the individual as deviant, proving that rather than focusing on the nature of society at large for explanations on deviancy, it is evenly ital to focus on the obese individual to understand their deviant label. Inevitably, this can be recognized as a weakness within the functionalist argument.In contrast, applying functionalism to obesity presents much strength in understanding why education have had to shift and develop in order to combat the obesity epidemic and create greater equilibrium within Western society. Australian schools have recognized the deviant nature of obesity, mainly due to its associated health risks, and have recently began enforcing healthy eating and exercise habits (Hareyan, 006). School systems have recognized that many families are unable to teach their children healthy habits, so have taken upon this role to have got the social order within society.Alongside this, there has been a vast increase in weight-loss alternatives (rather than simply the gym, or perhaps surgery) to suit the modern, working individual. mobile weight loss pills and detox diets are now more on the market than ever before and are available to anyone willing to pay. Functionalism revolves around creating solutions to maintain social order, and in regards to obesity, any actions have been taken as obesity is seen as a deviant act which disrupts the balanced functioning of society.In conclusion, obesity has been labeled as a deviant act within modern Western society as it violates what the consen sus recognizes as normal behaviour. It is increasingly less acceptable with those carrying the status left facing the consequences of social Judgment and exclusion. In applying the functionalist theory, the deviant nature of obesity can be further outlined and understood as a problematic issue within contemporary society.