I believe that one of minor, but also very important modern day witch hunts is the battle against overweight individuals. Media is to blame for most of it, it has put a image in our heads that has made us think heavier people should be hated or looked down on. We are taught to think that their lazy and do not care about how they look, that their not "normal". But this is all a myth, the way someone looks or how much they weigh does not give us reason to have hatred for them. Though I believe media is to blame completely it still brings us back to blaming specific groups for whatever the issue is. Other groups that might be blamed for it would be doctors, peers, the food industry etc.
Our minds have been twisted by society creating this stereotype that is in no way right. Society is basically "crying witch" to people who are overweight.
I found it interesting that in the Crucible many of the people being accused of being a witch were the weak and most vulnerable individuals. And I believe people who are overweight are treated somewhat like the people in the Crucible. Overweight people seem to be targeted and used to being bullied, which makes them easy targets, just like it was easier to accused the weakest people of being witches in the Crucible.
There does seem to be a certain prejudice against overweight people. I don't know as if I would call it a witch hunt, it does show some similarities. Media helps condition us over time to have a negative attitude towards obesity, and there is factual evidence to back up that being overweight is not a good thing. I would say women are definitely more at target for this witch hunt, overweight women are targeted and hated upon because media preys upon most peoples inner desires to feel pretty and wanted. I wouldn't say the overweight are weak but definitely targeted by the media.
ReplyDeleteKathleen,
ReplyDeleteYour Blog post is very informative and has a very good amount of details. I agree with you that there is a certain prejudice that is against a lot of overweight people in today's society. I also agree that the media is to be of blame for this too. Media always has something to say and sometimes is not always right about everything. They could say something that could be completely wrong and untrue. Like the saying, "Don't always believe what you see and hear." Great job on your blog post! I really enjoyed it.
This post is what society needs to hear, but I believe that society does this with everything that someone does that they believe is wrong. But I do believe that the media is to blame for this. The media is our biggest influence. The media puts out what they believe people should act and look. I believe that people should stand out and not fit the norm. The norm will eventual destroy us because we are trying to be what the media wants us to be. The media is on a witch hunt to find its next victim to believe everything it is saying.
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