Mean and stupid, but skinny

Women cannot take compliments. And they perpetually feel fat. And they get crabby because they ate that last extra large, jumbo packet of pretzels -- all by themselves. According to a recent study conducted by author and doctor Margo Maine, over half the females between the ages of 18 to 25 would prefer to be run over by a truck then be fat, and two-thirds of those surveyed would rather be mean or stupid. \nI know I suffer from many of the same ideals derived from feminized gender roles regarding the female perception of the female body. To clarify, these low self-opinions that women tend to display are not inherently female characteristics. These "female tendencies" instead, are learned social roles. These insecurities were pushed home when I went to Foster food hall. Girls were running around trying to limit their intake.\nMunching on pretzels instead of a piece of fruit was not going to solve any dimple, nor any fat issues. \nI found this quite pathetic. \nThe lads meanwhile were chewing furiously to get as much of the succulent food hall victuals into their bellies as quickly as possible. And needless to say, this is a general distinction between the sexes that I find frustrating. \nThe plethora of frustrated women's reactions are the same, regardless of creed and race, or even age (Body Image and Physical Self-Perceptions, University of North Carolina). These women all felt a disparity between how they perceived their physique to be, and how they desired to look. Furthermore women really shouldn't be reading all too much Vogue as that only highlights feeling fat and unattractive. What's forgotten is the layer of makeup and the strict life these 15-year-old models must adhere to in order to exhibit their ideal body in beauty magazines. According to the Rader Programs, a clinical group that specializes in the treatment of eating and related disorders including sexual abuse, the average woman is 5"4' and weighs 140 pounds. The average model is 5"11' and weighs 117 pounds. Most fashion models are thinner than 98 percent of American women.\nAnd why can women not accept compliments? What is it that hinders women from being comfortable with the size, shape and curves of their natural feminine selves? Sure, on the one hand some cultures regard modesty as a virtue. But we should also learn to take and accept compliments. To me, showing maturity in accepting compliments is one of the best self-confident characteristics a girl can exude.\nThere is also the problem of negative self reinforcement which occurs by not accepting and truly believing that our bodies are the most beautiful instruments we will ever have the pleasure of possessing. Only when things go wrong with the actual mechanism such as occurs in the face of illness, does one realize -- often too late -- that this is the case. Throughout history a fuller, curvier body as the ideal image, has been portrayed in statues and depicted in paintings. Venus di Milo by Botticcelli is simply put, a statue of a curvy woman illustrating the ideal at that time. Her missing arms are believed to have held a mirror in one hand to admire her beauty. This perception has remained the same throughout the past and across boundaries as the fuller body signified luxury, opulence and wealth. \nThese days the ideal body has changed drastically. Lean is in. Fads change and so do people's perceptions regarding beauty.\nIn all this, what must we women remember? That beauty is really only skin deep and that true attractiveness and magnetism is radiated from within. This is what truly counts. Eat three bags of pretzels with your head held high.