Powdermaker

This reading deals with the issues of obesity and how cultural ideals have changed. Powdermaker thought does not go into great deal about the situation, but touches on several of the issues. Obesity is an issue that cannot be dissected in 7 pages. The author brings up several important points about how our society has changed to one of consumption from one of production; food has become an over abundance, and has turned away from the prepared family meal to the fast food lifestyle. One idea that the author brings up is that we seems to be focusing on the food as the means to the end, the good and the bad, and not even factoring in physical exercise. Today people seem more focused on food as the bad guy; if they're overweight it's because of the food, not because they don't participate in any physical activity. Also she talks about how the male and female body image has changed. From the tribal ages when they would actually force feed women at the married age of 8 so they could no longer walk but waddle and men had very muscular physiques to the present age when women have become waiflike and are "not permitted" to grow older, and the men have larger physical physiques and gradually grow older with their grey hair showing and belly's getting bigger. In order for obesity to become something of the past we need to come to terms with the food epidemic that we are a part of now, food cannot be the cause of and solution to our society's image problems. Physical activity and a healthier lifestyle have to become enforced before obesity can become non-existent.