If " Real Men" Posed In Underwear Ads

[PhuturePriest]

A very interesting thing. We focus a lot on what "real women" look like in these times, but it's interesting how we very rarely think of the fact that men are unrealistically portrayed in the media as well.

 

"Brands like Dove and Aerie have already begun showing un-retouched, non-model female bodies in their advertisements, a small step in the direction of body positivity. But what would ads featuring "normal men" look like? A photo shoot from an English newspaper sought to imagine just that."

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/01/real-mens-bodies-underwear-ads_n_5543693.html

Edited July 1, 2014 by FuturePriest387

[Credo in Deum]

As your friend I'm worried about you, Miles.



That is all.

[PhuturePriest]

As your friend I'm worried about you, Miles.



That is all.

 

Nothing I don't already regularly hear. But what for specifically in this instance?

[Fidei Defensor]

As your friend I'm worried about you, Miles.



That is all.

He secretly wants to be an underwear model. Shh.

[PhuturePriest]

If I were to be a model, it wouldn't be for underwear.

[Perigrina]

Men are different from women.  In case anybody did not know that.  Men do not feel the same way about their physical appearance that women do and it does not make sense to treat them as equivalent.

[PhuturePriest]

Men are different from women.  In case anybody did not know that.  Men do not feel the same way about their physical appearance that women do and it does not make sense to treat them as equivalent.

 

Men and women are different. That doesn't mean men won't feel inadequate if there are a billion pictures in the media portraying men as physically flawless. Don't tell me that men don't feel inadequate about it and fall to eating disorders, because that's like me telling girls it's impossible for them to struggle with purity. There was a time I barely ate because I wanted to be as skinny as possible, and it was because I would look at the men in the media and see their flawless features and thought I had to look like that. Men and women are different, but that doesn't mean they share nothing in common.

Edited July 1, 2014 by FuturePriest387

[Credo in Deum]

Men are different from women. In case anybody did not know that. Men do not feel the same way about their physical appearance that women do and it does not make sense to treat them as equivalent.

Well that's just sexist! :) Edited July 1, 2014 by Credo in Deum

[Perigrina]

Men and women are different. That doesn't mean men won't feel inadequate if there are a billion pictures in the media portraying men as physically flawless. Don't tell me that men don't feel inadequate about it and fall to eating disorders, because that's like me telling girls it's impossible for them to struggle with purity. There was a time I barely ate because I wanted to be as skinny as possible, and it was because I would look at the men in the media and see their flawless features and thought I had to look like that. Men and women are different, but that doesn't mean they share nothing in common.

 

I am not saying that men do not have eating disorders.  But men can compensate for not having perfect looks by being good at sports or making money.  Nothing makes up for a woman not being attractive.

[Nihil Obstat]

Edit: never mind. Picture will not format.

Edited July 1, 2014 by Nihil Obstat

[PhuturePriest]

I am not saying that men do not have eating disorders.  But men can compensate for not having perfect looks by being good at sports or making money.  Nothing makes up for a woman not being attractive.

 

I'm not saying the stakes are the same. But I'm sick of people acting like men aren't susceptible to body image issues like women are. I don't get angry at them, because I know that this is a lie fed to society for years and years, much like the lie that women don't struggle with purity. But I'm not going to let people off the hook with ignorance if I can help it, so I strive to tell people that this is a more common issue among men than you'd think, and the only thing that can make an eating disorder in a man worse is making him think he's not a man because "only girls struggle with that."

[Kateri89]

I feel compelled to respond to this because I'm a firm believer that our culture tries to empower women so much that it seems like the tables are being turned on men.  If women shouldn't be falsely portrayed in the media as these perfectly thin yet still curvaceous beings, men shouldn't be portrayed as perfectly waxed with a defined six pack.  As far as I'm concerned, it's about time that both men and women are simply portrayed as human beings both attractive and unattractive, young or old, any race, etc.  We're people, not objects.  We should be treated and should treat each other with dignity and respect.  That's all.

[Perigrina]

I'm not saying the stakes are the same. But I'm sick of people acting like men aren't susceptible to body image issues like women are. I don't get angry at them, because I know that this is a lie fed to society for years and years, much like the lie that women don't struggle with purity. But I'm not going to let people off the hook with ignorance if I can help it, so I strive to tell people that this is a more common issue among men than you'd think, and the only thing that can make an eating disorder in a man worse is making him think he's not a man because "only girls struggle with that."

 

You are right and it is a good thing to point out to people.  Here is a study for you to use to back it up, if you need one:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2696560/

[Anomaly]

I am not saying that men do not have eating disorders. But men can compensate for not having perfect looks by being good at sports or making money. Nothing makes up for a woman not being attractive.

Yeah, there is a huge social expectation that fat men are good at sports and are necessarily good business men. Honey, it must be a paradise in Canada if you think society doesn't judge fat men. Men just aren't as mean to each other as women are when it's people you know.

[Credo in Deum]

It's the media.  No body goes looking through underwear adds to escape into reality.   

[Perigrina]

Yeah, there is a huge social expectation that fat men are good at sports and are necessarily good business men. Honey, it must be a paradise in Canada if you think society doesn't judge fat men. Men just aren't as mean to each other as women are when it's people you know.

 

That is not what I said.  I know that society judges fat men too.  I'm saying that men are not as dependent on attractiveness as women are for their self-esteem.

[Fidei Defensor]

Men are different from women.  In case anybody did not know that.  Men do not feel the same way about their physical appearance that women do and it does not make sense to treat them as equivalent.

I hate how my body looks and it makes me feel really insecure :(  I know that's its not common for men to feel that way, but I do

[Perigrina]

I hate how my body looks and it makes me feel really insecure :(  I know that's its not common for men to feel that way, but I do

 

I can see that if you feel this way, my comment could have been hurtful.  I am sorry if I hurt you or anyone else.

[Credo in Deum]

[PhuturePriest]

That is not what I said.  I know that society judges fat men too.  I'm saying that men are not as dependent on attractiveness as women are for their self-esteem.

 

I don't necessarily buy into the theory that women rely on attraction to get married more than men do. According to study after study, about 75% of women in America would never consider dating me because I'm only 5'5". I've never seen a study saying 75% of men won't date women who don't have C cups.

 

I honestly don't like the constant "We hurt more than you do" approach we have so often on Phatmass and in society in general. Men get paid more and are more successful than most women. But you have to consider most women get married and are stay-at-home moms. Women are assaulted more, objectified, and are more often victims of sexual violence. By the same token, men have a much higher percentage of getting into car accidents, dropping out of high school, and getting into hardcore drugs and lawbreaking. Men have much higher chances of not reporting being raped or sexually assaulted than women, and there are staggeringly high rates of men who don't report domestic violence done on them by their wives due to social taboo. Many men who report sexual violence aren't believed, and are told there's no way it happened because they are men, and it "only happens to girls". Each gender has its statistical and societal downsides, and I think we should just admit society treats both genders badly and try to fix all of it, rather than fixating and crying out injustice on just one gender.