Susan Barbo The Globalization Of Eating Disorders

Improved Essays
The Skinny on The Global Trend of Eating Disorders
“The Globalization of Eating Disorders” is a persuasive essay written by Susan Barbo who addresses the expansion of this phenomenon on a global level and the possible link to mass media images as the root cause. She further elaborates that this epidemic reaches across all countries, cultures, and genders. There are no clear-cut solutions to eliminate this destructive behavior but the author calls for acknowledgement that this is a cultural issue and we need to be aware of what influences our society. In “The Globalization of Eating Disorders” the author persuades us with a strong emphasize of logos that this epidemic is a global issue and the media’s unrealistic body standards may play
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The promoting of the pin thin trend is not only dangerous but highly irresponsible and society should demand better standards for our youth. Ms. Bardo is not only informing her audience, but is persuading them to acknowledge, get informed and to act. This essay flows with cultural and social context and the situations that are birthed from this issue. For example, this involves the situations of other cultures negatively responding to outside influences of body shaming regardless of their long preserved cultural beliefs. The example of African woman shying away from their curvy statures due to comments like “People have realized that slim is beautiful” (Bardo …show more content…
The claims are presented with evidence that lends to the credibility of the author’s scope of work and successfully proves the author’s theories as to the possible causes. One aspect I would have liked to have seen investigated is this a mental health issue compounded by society behaviors and attitudes toward body imaging? As a reader, I would like to see more evidence from the author’s research and personal experiences. She has the expertise to further delve into all causes and possible strategies to combat this damaging trend toward body image. Is media images and standards the problem, or is the standard set by American society the true cause of this destructive body imaging trend?

Work Cited
Bardo, Susan. “The Globalization of Eating Disorders.” The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 12th ed. Customized for Oklahoma City Community College, New York: McGraw-Hill, 2014, pp.

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