Is “Fat” A Dirty Word?:
Body Dismorphic Disorder and The Postfeminist
Chick Lit Heroine
“For every feminist action, there was an equal and opposite beauty myth
reaction”—Naomi Wolf
“Looks are a form of currency that aid not only one’s search for a mate but also
one’s ability to secure that promotion, get that next job, and become a fully
realised human being”—Alison Umminger
In The Whole Woman, Germaine Greer argues, “The further from the
natural a female form, the more attractive it becomes. The further ffom the
natural a female form, the more feminine it is” (Greer 29). She implies that the
corporeality of women, the body which is the bearer of new life and thus an
intimate manifestation of Nature, is victimized by patriarchal ideals of beauty
and thinness. Contemporary chick lit novels which have been a commercial
juggemaut for reflecting “how things really are” for young urban women, depict
the struggles women undergo to coax and ultimately force their wayward bodies
into obeying the dictates of beauty according to the fashion and beauty
industries. Greer adds, “Women grow up with a Barbie doll—her long legs, tiny
waist and huge breasts—it’s no wonder they want to look like that,” and a
majority of Contemporary women do suffer from low self-esteem because their
bodies do not fit the ideal of feminine beauty c