How are bodies socially constructed

How are bodies socially constructed It is crucial to gain an understanding of what social construction is, in order to assess its influence on human bodies. However it is difficult to operationalise social construction in literal terms. Social construction encompasses a multitude of elements, Hacking (2002) notes, social construction is a kettle of many very different kinds of fish. Typically however, social construction is concerned with the ways in which society has conceptualised ideals and expectations, looking at this in relation to specific areas of sociological interest. For sociologist when looking at the body their main concern is with the process of transforming a biological entity through social action Chris Shilling (2003). Members of a society construct their bodies in ways that comply with their gender status and accepted notions of masculinity and femininity. That is, they try to shape and use their bodies to conform to their cultures or racial ethnic groups expectations. (Lorber and Martin 2005) This essay will look at the ways in which the body is a social construction, with particular focus on the extent in which individuals in society are willing to perform to socially constructed ideals. It is important to recognise that social construction of the body is a global phenomenon; however this essay will look at westernised social construction of the body in particular. By looking primarily at the social construction of femininity, a subject which has typically been theorised extensively when looking at the body, an attempt will then be made to look at the social construction of masculinities and the aging body, in relation to the complex role that societys expectations have to play. The body is often seen as something which is straightforwardly biological, natural and given. (Macionis and Plummer, 2005). Unsurprisingly different types of bodies can be seen in terms of shapes, sizes and physical build; however there is an increasing notion of what aesthetically is socially acceptable, with women in the media industry in particular being promoted in a certain way. In affluent Western societies, slenderness is generally associated with happiness, success, youthfulness and social acceptability (Grogan, 1999). This notion could be said to have largely contributed to the fact that, increasingly, women are dissatisfied with their bodies. For Grogan (1999), media, as an industry, depicts the ideology that slenderness is preferred. This factor no doubt, has impacted the rise in eating disorders and womens willingness to have cosmetic surgery in modern times, in order to fit such ideals of slenderness which are conceptualised in magazines and television programmes. In wes tern culture dieting, breast enhancement and face-lifts are ways that women have changed their appearance to fit ideals of feminine beauty (Kivisto, 2005) Grimlin (2000) looks negatively at the role of cosmetic surgery, as a multi-million pound industry, with the notion that womens bodies are treated as commodities, Cosmetic surgery stands, for many theorists and social critics, as the ultimate symbol of invasion of the human body for the sake of physical beauty.'(Grimlin 2000). This view could be criticized, in the idea that many women who choose to have surgery, rather than to fit in with social constructions and therefore demands of society, do so in order to express their own personal individualism and identity, perhaps advocating their rights of freedom to adapt their own body if it pleases them to do so. Featherstone and Turner (2001) note Bodies have become the ultimate vehicle for writing ones identity.; this looks at anything from the clothes and makeup an individual wears, to self decoration through tattoos, piercings and cosmetic surgery. It is questionable to what extent women self decorate in order to fit the stereotypical views of social expectations of what is beautiful, or to oppose these views of conventional attractiveness, both however implicitly relate to the body as a social construction, either in a way that conforms to, or rebels against ideas of socially constructed beauty. Sexuality is closely linked with that of the female body, with socially constructed expectations of sexual femininity, Women are expected to be nuturant and emotionally giving, willing to subordinate their own desires to please men and their own interests to take care of children, Therefore womens bodies should be yielding and sexually appealing to men when they are young and plumpy maternal when they are older. (Kivisto 2005). This mass of generalizations, and assumptions, (that women are heterosexual, that all women want children, that women will forget about their own pleasures to please men), highlights the typical socially constructed views of western culture. It is therefore important to notice a change in womens sexual role through feminist ideas which reflect a modernized culture, with a new type of woman emerging in the 21st century. Through promoting sexual autonomy, feminists attempt to, advocate womens control of their sexuality and reproduction. (Macionis and Plummer 200 5), making their bodies less socially constructed to please male expectation. It is interesting to look at the social construction of the body in relation to the process of aging, as commonly, especially in traditional thesis, the bodily aging process has been referred to as a biological one, without consideration of its social relevance, Popular stereotypes about old people, usually centered around the inevitability of old age and its manifestation as physical decrepitude from which culture irrelevance could be inferred. Old age was therefore out-side the social because it was an essentially biological process. (Tulle-Winton 2000). With this in mind, Christopher A. Faircloth (2003) looks explicitly at the social construction of the aging process on peoples bodies. Reinserting that older bodily images are ones which are to be looked at with equal importance to younger women. Faircloth (2003), gives a detailed examination of the sexual attractiveness of older aged women (than that which is traditionally conceptualised in the media), concluding that there need to be seen as sexually attractive is still of extreme significance. Faircloth looks at the visual representations of older women through the realms of film and photography for example, with specific reference to a loss of sexuality in the representation of the older generation in society. Similarly Itzin (1986) states, Rarely are women portrayed as capable and independent, never as sexually attractive, (with the word women in this case, referring specifically to that of older women). Itzin notes that societies construction of what is sexually attractive is r arely looked at in relation to that of the older generation. When looking at the social constructions of femininity and the aging process, it can be seen that menopause is often reflected which considerable negativity, with the term being one which has connotations of a loss of sexuality and the idea that a noticeable change on the youthfulness of a womens body can be seen. These socially constructed misconceptions, suggest that the menopause directly affects a womens body, creating wrinkles and bodily sagging, which biologically is not the case (Winterich 2003). In a bid to maintain the socially constructed body which is considered attractive, characteristically one of youthfulness, merchandise, such as hair colouring products, anti-wrinkle creams and an increased number cosmetic surgeries can be seen to be endorsed by the older generation, (Craig Thompson 1995). Traditionally much theoretical focus on the social constructions of body, has been on that of femininity; however the social constructions of masculinity can be considered similarly, western societies expect men to be aggressive initiators of action and protectors of women and children, therefore their bodies should be muscular and physically strong, increasingly Men life weights, get hair transplants, and undergo cosmetic surgery to mould their bodies and faces to a masculine ideal (Kivisto 2005) This observation of men in the 21st century shows masculinity of the body to be concerned with that of aesthetic pride in a similar way to women, however there is less pressure on the male community to fit the mould of these constructed ideals. A modernised new man is also represented to fit the ideas of social construction, with the coinage of the phrase heterosexual male to highlight the increased notion of male grooming as acceptable in society. Inevitably this essay only looks at a small spectrum of the features that contribute to the body as a social construction, however a lot can be seen on how the body is effected by the views of society, a body which conclusively is not only biologically constructed but also socially.

Candide :: essays research papers

Candide is a humorous, far-fetched tale by Voltaire satirizing the optimism accepted by the philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. Candide looks for true happiness, and his ultimate acceptance of life’s disappointments. He grew up in the Castle of Westphalia and was taught by the greatest philosopher of the province and the whole world, Dr. Pangloss. Dr. Pangloss taught Candide that everything that happens is for the best. Candide is exiled from the castle because of his love for the Baron’s daughter, Cunegonde. He then sets out to different places in the hope of finding her and achieving total happiness. Candide knew thought he knew that everything happened for the best because the greatest philosopher taught him that, but everyone around him did not accept that theory. Voltaire refused to believe that what happens is always for the best. Voltaire shows the primary concerns during the period of Enlightenment, but also criticizes certain aspects of the movement. He attacks the idea that good prevails over evil because he believes that human beings perpetrate evil. He laughs at Candide for believing all the corruption that is occurring and religious intolerance. Eldorado a town worshipped by one god, and "all were priests" was not explainable to Candide. The townspeople did not pray because they had all they wanted, but they did sing hymns of thanks. Candide learned that neither law courts nor prisons were needed for these happy, law-abiding people. He was surprised that a society lived by worshipping one god, and everyone abided by the laws. The Eldorado people related to God just by being thankful for everything that they had. A King or leader did not dictate that they must follow a certain religion, or pray to God, but yet they still believed in God. For example, the states of the Holy Roman Empire were always being told by Kings, and leaders which religion they must practice, and tried to ban different religions that they didn’t believe in. Candide was amazed by how generous people were to invite them into there house to eat, and took care of Cacambo, and him. To Voltaire this was an ideal world, but it seemed as if it w as to perfect and he knew that it could never exist. After Candide and Pangloss reunited, and traveled to Lisbon a earthquake occurred.

Being a Good Manager

Scott Gallo Management 220 5 Commandments of Being a Good Manager It is clear that in today’s world there are no very successful businesses that do not have a solid management. A manager is a position that has high importance and they help their respective companies run as smoothly as possible. Without this position it would take longer for things to get done because they are the executive position in the company, which means that they take care of the entire system and they do not worry about individual tasks in the workplace.Instead of doing all the work themselves they create the efficient way for a group of people to do it the fastest way possible. There is a countless number of characteristics that would help make the ideal manager but it is nearly impossible for a manager to cover all of them. The best managers use all the resources to make sure they have a plan and they have the fastest way of achieving it. After learning all of the characteristics, techniques and theor ies, I now know what I could do best to become a good manager.One thing that I found very important was to have cultural intelligence. Almost every business has a good amount of diversity and there has to be a way of dealing with that. Cultural intelligence basically means that a manager has to be able to come up with a response after dealing with a situation where the manager has to interpret unfamiliar gestures. It can be hard to understand someone because of a cultural difference but a manager has to see past that and be able to deal with the situation at hand.Adaption to other cultures becomes necessary if a job was acquired and happened to be in another country. Managers should be able to understand the local customs, norms and beliefs of the location they work in. Cultural intelligence includes the fact that you have to pick out clues from a situation or misunderstanding and be able to respond in an appropriate way. Another important thing that a manager has to have is a good code of ethics. This is something that should be initiated as soon as a new manager enters a business.A manager has to have good basic ground rules in the workplace before they can adapt into such a new environment. This concept sometimes has to do with the cultural diversity because a good code of ethics basically shows what is acceptable and what is not in the workplace. Planning could be the single most important thing a manager has to be aware of. Planning is the key to any success in a business. It is necessary for a manager to know the proper steps in planning. They include, developing a plan, then translating the plan, plan operations, execute the plan and monitor and learn.This is a strategic method to achieve goals effectively. Planning can be short term or long term depending on what best suits the future goals. Good planning will direct employees and help them perform efficiently. The planning along with being able to adapt to unforeseen problems, an operation should run very smoothly. Also, to exemplify a good manager, one would want to use strategic management. This means that means decisions are made to find out the best possible environment and plan to achieve the organizational goals.Top manager also look at rival companies to make sure they are up to par with everyone. Strategy always will change over time so a good manager has to be able to determine when the best time for change would be. As long as there is still competitiveness in the field then the manager is most likely happy. Lastly, decision making is an important asset in becoming a good manager. There are countless numbers of decisions everyday for a manager so it is important that the skill is performed at a high level.It is defined as a process of finding problems and opportunities and resolving them. Decision making is not very easy but it has to be done in all environments. It has to be done under changing factors and unknown information but good managers will succeed. Essentiall y, there are a countless number of characteristics that a manger should have but without main concepts nothing will ever get done. A manager should give direction to the organization, provide leadership, and decide how to use organizational resources to accomplish goals.

Specsavers - marketing - 1665 Words

The Open University B203 Business Functions in context Specsavers Marketing TMA03 Jan Polak (B6939804) 10/01/2015 Part 1 Introduction Specsavers was founded in 1984, when was deregulated opticians market by political forces. Co-founders Doug and Mary Perkins took advantage of the marketing opportunity and built global strong brand. The company was established as a joint venture partnership where each Specsavers opticians is legally a separate business, with 50 per cent of the shares owned by the Specsavers Optical Group. The way of integrated marketing led to increase the partnership as well as sells and profits. Today is Specsavers leaders of most its markets with its strategic objectives bring and drive†¦show more content†¦(Specsavers Partnership, 2014) Today the Specsavers Optical Group consists of over 2,700 joint venture partners that run more than 1,700 optical and hearing centres across the UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Australia and New Zealand with a combined turnover of  £ 1.9 billion (Specsavers, 2014) Strategic objectives of Specsavers Specsavers is now the largest privately owned opticians in the world and UKs leading optical retailer, with a market share of 47 per cent in UK(Dibb and Simkin, 2012, p64). Specsavers number of stores at end of 2013/2014 in UK is 692 which is more by 8.7 per cent than in 2012/2013 . The total revenue of Specsavers Optical Group is 1,070 millions pounds in UK at end of 2013/2014 which is more by 9.1 per cent than in 2012/2013. The total revenue of Specsavers Optical Group in 2013/2014 at all its markets is 1.9 billion pounds which is increased by 7.8 per cent than year before (Specsavers, 2014). Specsavers Optical Group now is in process of intense growth at a current markets and at a new markets in Scandinavia and Netherlands. At the markets in UK and Australasia Specsavers try to achieve increase sale by massive advertising campaign at main stream TV channels and by sponsorship at event such as Australian tennis open championship, British and Irish Lions Tour and Rugby League World Cup (Dibb andShow MoreRelatedBusiness Analysis: Specsaver2008 Words   |  9 PagesSpecsavers Annual Report 2007/08 Specsavers is the world’s largest privately-owned optical retailer. This has been another record breaking year for the Specsavers Group. In the face of increasing competition and a tough economic environment, Specsavers has continued to advance from strength to strength. In 2005 the company vision was to attain 1,000 outlets and  £1 billion per year turnover by 2010. Both milestones were reached and passed by early 2008, more than two years earlier than plannedRead MoreNew Product Development10504 Words   |  43 Pagesoperates through two business divisions: retail, and manufacturing and wholesale. The group s manufacturing and wholesale distribution is engaged in the following: 1. The design, manufacturing 2. The wholesale distribution 3. The marketing of house brand and designer lines of mid to premium-priced prescription frames and sunglasses. CUSTOMER BASE The group s major wholesale customers include retailers of mid and premium-priced eyewear, such as optical superstores, independentRead MoreAims and objectives of businesses1051 Words   |  5 PagesGrant Thornton has more than 600 offices in over 100 countries. 2. SPECSAVERS : Again this is a for profit making company, which provides products such as spectacles and lenses and also services such as hearing care and eye sight at an affordable price. Specsavers aim towards making their customers to be happy with their purchase, they also give a three month no quibble, no fuss guarantee to their customers. Specsavers is one of the UK’s most leading opticians. And that they have storesRead MoreThe Internal Organisation of a Business2109 Words   |  9 PagesMarks and Spencers. These are the following, Marketing, Human Resources, Customer Service and Finance. Marketing: In the Marks and Spencers store they advertise new products; offers such as the buy one get one free initiative, let the customers know what they are may have missed out on, make their products seem more glamorous and more enticing. They make sure there is lots of new offers so customers are always looking to come to the shop. Ways of marketing in the stores could range from workers tellingRead MoreMarketing Objectives Of The Bailey Nelson s Total Target Customer Base3374 Words   |  14 PagesCampaign Planning Brief 1.0 Marketing Objectives ï  µ Increase Bailey Nelson’s total target customer base by 20% after the end of the campaign in December 2015 (see 3.0) ï  µ Increase Bailey Nelson’s overall market share by 15% during the entire campaign duration period between July-December 2015 ï  µ Increase total sales of eyewear (either sunglasses or prescription glasses) by 5% for each month of the campaign duration until after December 2015 2.0 Communications Objectives ï  µ To create brand name awarenessRead MoreA Business Plan For A Fast Food Restaurant2558 Words   |  11 Pagesdefinition these where A contract exists which delineates the responsibilities and obligations of both parties. A strong continuing cooperative relationship exists between tem. The franchise operates the business substantially under the trade name and marketing plan of the franchisor These definitions where both broad enough to cover both business format franchising and product franchising, however they do possess some flaws. Caves Murphy II’s definition has an emphasis on trademark and brand. This