I don’t watch Mad Men. It's very hard to fit everything in
with the abundance of Food Network/Cooking Channel shows and the reality crap I
watch. So I am unfamiliar with Christina Hendricks, her body of work and her
body. It was only via Time Magazine I read her quoted as saying “I think
calling me full-figured is just rude.” I ripped out that article pronto.
After some googling I found out that Ms. Hendricks
is shall we say busty.
I was then confused, does “full” refer to being buxom or
is full-figured a euphemism for fat? One definition described “having an amply
proportioned or heavy body”. Another
source said in the fashion world, full-figured is size 12 or above. Ehow had this to say about the full-figured woman “she has thick hips, a rounded backside,
large breasts and a non-narrow waistline.” From that it seems full figured is a
buxom/overweight combo but they clarify “full-figured does not automatically
constitute overweight, many full-figured women are healthy, active and
conscious of balanced eating.” And yet thesaurus.com didn’t give me anything close to healthy or
balanced eater as a synonym. “Not-narrow” = ouch.
The quote from Hendricks came during an incredibly awkward interview by Australian journalist Kate Waterhouse . Maybe it was jetlag but Hendricks seemed
ticked off before full-figured was mentioned. I also couldn’t help but notice
that Ms. Waterhouse is tiny and curve-less. Does this matter? It may. I would take a comment regarding my parenting from
another mom in the park very differently a comment uttered from a person without children
present. I also take issue with the assumption that one wants
to be a body type poster child. “You’re an inspiration to full-figured women”.
How about being an inspiration for other actresses or simply an inspiration to
women? The question not only assumes
Hendricks considers herself full-figured but also that she’s somehow showing
other “amply proportioned” women that you can be this size and succeed. Even Ms.
Waterhouse’s sweet Australian voice didn’t let her get away with this.
Finally, there’s the issue that we can say things about
ourselves that doesn’t mean others can. I can say I’m moody, obsessive, short
or old…but you can’t. If you do, I’ll pull a Christina and tell you you’re
rude.
What do you think full figured means? Is someone "non-narrow" automatically an inspiration? Do you think this question was out of line? What would you have done in Ms Hendricks situation?
What do you think full figured means? Is someone "non-narrow" automatically an inspiration? Do you think this question was out of line? What would you have done in Ms Hendricks situation?
Ironically, I was watching something yesterday (can't remember what it was) where the lady said she's PREFER to be called full-figured instead of overweight or fat. She said she thought it was a much kinder way to describe her body-type/shape. I agreed. Is there really any nice way to say "you're large"?! I mean....no, there isn't.
ReplyDeleteYep—totally think that question was out of line.
ReplyDeleteagreed but said in a dainty "what's so bad" way.
ReplyDeleteLate in day tough...let me know if other times work ever.
I can see that and at first I thought it wasn't terrible but the more I dug the more I felt shouldn't have been said.
ReplyDeleteI think it's definitely rude...just because it's one of those things that you don't need to say to someone else, even if it's true. As you mention, I can say that I'm uptight, or moody, or carrying an exra 10lbs, and it's all true - but if you say it to me then it's rude. If you don't have anything nice to say....
ReplyDeleteI will also say that while I'm also not familiar with Ms. Hendricks, based on the photos here she seems to have roughly the same body type that I do (and since the camera adds a few pounds I'll assume she's probably a little "narrower" than me). I don't consider myself to be full-figured by any means. I'm fit and would love to lose a few pounds but am at a healthy weight. I think she's just "full figured" compared to the rest of Hollywood, not compared to what a normal person should be. She's just not a size 00.
First of all, the "journalist" was a crappy interviewer. She didn't do her homework at all, was asking super simple, shallow questions and was just a dumb bore. Her interview was flat and lifeless and I am sure that is why Hendricks was pissed. It takes time and coordination to go through these press junkets and this woman was wasting her time. On another note, full figured means fat, come on. Would any woman ever want the word FULL (i.e I am full because I have eaten too much, I am full I have had enough) used to describe ANY part of her body in this society? More than anything though, Hendricks is an amazing actress, and her weight keeps coming up, it is TOTALLY insulting! How about, wow you are really an inspiration to up and coming actresses and artists, tell us how you got your start and what inspires you? It was just a bad interview, but FULL means FAT--said the 5'11 size 12. :)
ReplyDelete"Full figured" is definitely just another way of saying "fat" or "heavy". If any descriptor had to be used, it would have been much more polite (and accurate) to use the word "curvy" or "hourglass" - which someone can be regardless of that magic number on the scale.
ReplyDeleteThe bigger issue - a woman's appearance takes precedence over her actual abilities and skills. Can you imagine a reporter telling Zach Galifianakis he is inspiration for "heavy-set" men everywhere? During the Olympics, did Usain Bolt's hair become a major media story for 2 days? Has the news ever commented on how Bill Clinton could use a little more under-eye concealer? Of course not. Their achievements take front seat, not their appearance.
I suspect that's what Christina Hendricks reacted to. Her directness was completely appropriate and I would have done the same thing (also to note: the reporter had been told not to talk about body or weight - the focus of the interview was supposed to be on Ms. Hendricks' work).
Jane Russell was full-figured and didn't seem to mind identifying herself as such, but things change. Now it's probably a bad idea to say much of anything to people. It's rude to say, "Did you eat all that?" "Are those your real nails?" "How do you stay so skinny?" and so on. Many people take offense easily, too. They'll think that if you like their hair today, you must not have liked it yesterday!
ReplyDeleteI think the question was a bad choice. Why should she be inspiration for someone based on her weight? On the flip side, we've heard how (for example) an Asian child in California growing up in the 70s didn't see her life reflected in commercials and television shows. So perhaps Hendricks' success does happen to inspire an actress who isn't what we think is the Hollywood norm. While that would be great, it was a bad question choice for that interview. If I'm reading correctly, she called her rude after the interview, which was the polite way to handle her displeasure. But I believe someone may not have seen that as calling someone fat. Using Jane Russell as an example, when I was growing up, fat was fat and full-figured was va-va-voom.
Let me start with, Christina is right about the reporter being rude (I like the other commenters' point about her questions being lazy and superficial, too). Lauren I cannot fathom the fact that you are not into Mad Men! Another topic for another day.
ReplyDeleteHaving worked around models, I can think of plenty of times when "full figured" doesn't have the same negative stigma as "fat". I have worked on TV spots for two different magazines where we wanted to show different bathing suits or jeans for different body types so we looked for models who filled the categories: boyish, curvy, apple, pear, full etc etc. We never said, "Let's get a fat girl in here" because full figured means something along the lines of having a feminine shape that looks nice in clothes but isn't a sample size (which can vary from 0 to 4) but certainly doesn't mean fat. Fat carries such a negative connotation where full figured doesn't quite have to. Not that I want anyone to refer to me as full figured, however so there's that...
I think the issue is more that there isn't a lot of acceptance of different body types, certainly in the media, and I would say, to some extent, generally. I mean, whenever you have a curvier/bustier female celebrity who is still thin and fit, people talk about it in a way that isn't necessarily the case for thin female celebrity without the curves. I mean, you don't hear people asking Gwyneth Paltrow if she's an inspiration to boyish figured women, do you?
ReplyDeleteI thought about that but then thought about my recent post about overweight people in ads. I felt it was calculated/others said they did like to see it. I'm all for being shown a variety of body types/ages/heights/types but I don't think we should feel inspired purely based on size/shape.
ReplyDeleteSo much, where do I begin? So maybe, full figured is different in fashion. I think plus size models choose their career and may be more used to be labeled. As for an actress, I think it goes back to the fact that you can't call someone curvy/large/full figured unless they are on board with it and even then you risk rudeness. Should I be watching back episodes of mad men?
ReplyDeletePart of the issue was in the asking, the use of "inspiration" and the fact that she asks the questions twice (pushy). I don't think "people love your look, do you ever think sexy/curvy girls like seeing you on screen" would've been taken as poorly. And while it's hard to make comments, I think tact and sensitivity goes a long way.
ReplyDeleteAmen. I agree completely. It's not only insulting because of "full figured" it's also the assumption she is inspiring people with her figure. Can you imagine "men everywhere feel better about their beer bellies?"
ReplyDeleteHey Carrie, I missed your comments. The worst part is you'd think if someone was drafting questions they would reshape the "full figured" one to say, "what do you do that makes you feel good" or as you said "what inspires you?" Editing would have done her wonders. Mean and stupid/bad combo.
ReplyDelete100% Jen, how about you have a beautiful body that many women would aspire to, what do you think of the need to be size 00 that many actresses experience? As you can see I am stuck thinking of the many ways this could've been handled better. Can we hope that this headline will have journalists rethink how questions can be insulting.
ReplyDeleteI definitely don't want this to come off insensitive, but I definitely feel that a few years ago "fuller figured" might have meant more "hour-glassed" shaped. But, as more obese women (not overweight, obese) have searched for words that gently describe their body type, the phrase "fuller figured" has begun to take on a different meaning. One viewing of "Say Yes to the Dress Big Bliss" makes you realize that size 30 women are looking for dresses that show off their "curves." We used to say Jennifer Lopez was "curvy" because of her amazing back side. Now, "curves" is also becoming more negatively associated. I too would have been offended at the awful question, and the negative connotation "Full Figured" carries with it. Love your blogs Lauren!!
ReplyDeleteI can totally see how "full figured" would cause upset. This woman IS curvy but the average woman is no? We are supposed to have boobs and hips right? Some women just naturally have more in these areas (I definitely have real DD boobs right now (a D pre-pregnancy)...runs in the family). Does that mean I'm full-figured? I'm pretty sure my A-cup sister in law would then kill to be called full figured. I would personally be offended though if someone called me full-figured. It implies FAT and let's just leave it at that.
ReplyDeleteSeems the grass may be greener on the other side of the "cup" Erin?Yes? Couldn't resist. While I would love a day "D" dom, still woudn't want to be called "full".
ReplyDeleteinteresting, so you think "full" and "curvy" have a different impression now. It's not insensitive at all, kind of insightful.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't get the video to play, unfortunately. Was looking forward to a super awkward interview. :) Just kidding.
ReplyDeleteI think Whitney (below) has some interesting insight...and maybe that's why Christina takes such offense to the topic?
I think it's rude and I would totally be offended as well. I think full figured has always been an euphemism for fat and I would not consider CH to be "fat" in the least. She is not "lean" or someone we'd call "skinny" or "thin", no, but that doesn't immediately equal Full Figured. I think she is gorgeous. No, she is not your average Hollywood 00, but is that really grounds for discussion in an interview? She probably struggles with her body image already. I am similar in stature and have done the acting thing. It sucks to have gigantic knockers as you are limited in the roles you can be cast in and everyone considers you to be "full figured" even if you are a size 2-6! Seriously. It's lame and annoying and if I were her I would hate it.
ReplyDelete