Fat is a Feminist Issue

Susie Orbach’s stance on the rising American issue on obesity within her essay “Fat Is a Feminist Issue” can be similarly related to David Zinczenko’s stance in his essay “Don’t Blame the Eater.” In fact, she claims just that when writing, “A feminist perspective to the problem of women’s compulsive eating is essential if we are to move on from the ineffective blame-the-victim approach” (Orbach 448). In this quote she blatantly informs the reader that blaming the eater is not the correct approach to take. Instead, she provides another outlook to consider when analyzing the cause for overweight, specifically in women. This outlook is feminism. Society has monopolized American’s minds, creating a strict belief on how women should behave. In doing this, society has illustrated the image of the woman girls strive for every day. Within her essay she accomplishes her goal in providing information and data supporting her view that obesity among females can be defended. This is a unique and rational idea Orbach presents to the reader. Instead of pointing fingers at the food industry as Zinczenko does within his essay, Orbach turns her eyes to the American people. She uncovers and discusses the pressures America places on women. Pressures like size, clothes and sexuality all play a role in American women’s lives. Orbach claims that if you are a true feminist, being overweight symbolizes your disproval of society’s opinion on how women should be. Thus, she describes it as being “a definite and purposeful act” (Orbach 449). It is purposeful because it serves as a physical way to silently protest against conformity. In order for women to be successful, media claims that top-of-the-line hair products, clothes and make up are a necessity. Businesses thrive off of a woman’s insecurity. Make-up hides the problem, clothes cover the problem and hair products fix the problem. Similar to Zinczenko, Orbach touches on the fact that American women are becoming prey for