The Self-Policing, Internalized Panopticon By Foucault

Gender is a concept that seems to be surface level, as it is cultural meanings that are linked to sex, and as we have learned cultural meanings have two very different aspects. The first is that culture changes, so ideals change, which is why certain characteristics in our culture fall in and out of popularity, and why the culturally constructed ideal is just a passing meaning. But the other side of gender, the embodied side, is more concerning and has a impact on people, which can affect people in positive and negative ways.

Foucault, a famous philosopher and social theorist came up with the theory of the Self-Policing, Internalized Panopticon, which is the theory that people are policed, managed, and watched so often that they start doing it to themselves. Everything you do is scrutinized and ridiculed by yourself, which I believe fits in well with gender. Almost everything I do polices my own sense of self, and the way that I project my gender. This management is present even in the little things I do in my
Our culture is notorious right now for having a specific body type that is considered to be most desired, which is small waisted with larger breasts and thick thighs with no stretch marks. The media markets this type of body to be athletic or fit. To fit into that category and give myself embodied capital, I try to eat healthy to attain that desired body. This is important, because embodied capital is a marker of advantage within our social society. Being skinny and attractive gives people an edge in certain situations, because they have the traits to acquire that advantage. The problem with this, and one that I know well, is that this cultural norm of the perfect female body is practically impossible to reach. A small portion of our population fits into the desired criteria, yet so many people want to be part of