It's still hot.

[lagilman]

And now it's muggy, too. Joy.

Sadly, deadlines wait on no heat wave. But before I go off to work -- an interesting article on weight, fashion and intellectual anlysis versus emotional understanding, from the New York Times.

"Did I feel that I was a pretender in the fashion world? Feelings of imposture are hardly limited to the girl rackets. Saul Bellow confided to Philip Roth that in his 30's he had experienced doubts about whether, as the son of Russian Jews, he had "the right to practice the writer's trade." And this was after Bellow had written two novels and was about to begin "The Adventures of Augie March." I was merely writing about skirts.

Still, the question of my fitness was relevant, more than relevant. I couldn't fit into the clothes. I weighed 190 pounds when I arrived in Detroit, which would be my weight four years later when I went to The Washington Post. And if I couldn't fit into the clothes I presumed to know about, what did that do to my credibility as a fashion writer and, eventually, a critic?"

Comments

[qnotku.livejournal.com]

I was going to reply to this. I tried. I tried 4 or 5 times and each time my anger and bitterness over the weight bigotry (and yes that article had its fair share of it despite -- or perhaps because of -- the writer's own weight problem) overwhelmed me. Oh the nasty things I filled this space with -- and then deleted.

So all I will say is: hurray for her. rah.

Teri *struggling to be nice and it's not coming easy*

a different POV

[lagilman]

I've been thinking over the article this morning too (note that I said it was interesting, not unbiased or positive), amusingly enough while I was at the gym.

(this may get long, sorry)

Most people would look at me and say "she doesn't have a weight problem, she's skinny." What they didn't/couldn't know (or didn't care) was that every time someone said that, it just made my weight problem worse. Not that I was overweight (I weigh more than people assume, but within medically acceptable targets), but that I was so damn aware of my weight, and when it didn't match up to expectations (mine, my ex's, society's). So there was this constant stress to meet those expectations, to the point where bulemia seemed like a good idea.

That was when I realized I needed to break those thinking habits, which meant changing a lot of my life, and while it's an ongoing process, I'm making real strides. And now I go to the gym not to lose weight, but because I enjoy having muscle tone (keeps the medical problems at bay, too).

But there's one thing that I've always indulged myself in, and that's pretty clothing. Clothing I looked and felt good in. Stylish clothing, stuff that was well-made and long-lasting as well as the frivoulous, wear-away-to-nothing outfits. I know how to dress for my figure flaws, and what to accentuate -- my mother taught me that at a very early age, so while I'd love to be able to wear something with a fabulous neckline, instead I wear something with a raised hemline, and give thanks for what nature did bless me with (hint: it's not cleavage).

So I was reading the article from a different point of view, I suppose; understanding the purely visceral satisfaction you get when you put on an article of clothing and it does everything it's supposed to. When you feel *good* about your body. But to my way of thinking, that has nothing to do with weight, per se, and more to do with well-designed clothing. She seemed to have bought into the idea that the only good clothing is couture clothing, and that was her real bigotry and bias, not weight.

So (finally getting to the point, yay) to me, this article was basically saying "can you only write what you know, both intellectually and intuitively?" Or is it possible, as a writer, to extrapolate from research, and convey that information in an emotionally satisfying nature?

As someone who writes daily about things I'll never do, as well as the things I know very well, it's a question I've yet to answer to my satisfaction. Hence, my finding this article so interesting.

Re: a different POV

[qnotku.livejournal.com]

Ah. I have had friends who faced (and still face) the same problem as yours, Suri. It's not about weight, it's about acceptance and being mentally comfortable with oneself. It's only been in the last 12 years or so that I've had serious weight problems. Most of my life was spent at a "normal" weight and having to deal with the onset of thyroid and heart issues has been very difficult -- especially since I do remember fitting into a size 10/12. It's hard not to be angry and bitter, but I try. Posts like yours showing the other side of the coin help a lot.

And now to get to your point (and about time too, lol) can you write what you don't know? Certainly you can. Fiction (and non-fiction, see Iraq war coverage) writers have been doing it since the first story-teller looked up from his/her contemplation of the fire and said, "Let me tell you about...."

hugs,
T

Re: a different POV

[lagilman]

And now to get to your point (and about time too, lol) can you write what you don't know? Certainly you can. Fiction (and non-fiction, see Iraq war coverage) writers have been doing it since the first story-teller looked up from his/her contemplation of the fire and said, "Let me tell you about...."


They've been doing it, yes -- but have they been doing it well? As well as they might with firsthand experience? Might experience (even secondhand) enhance the retelling, or hinder it? Can you describe mud without ever having gotten your hands wet and dirty? Can you always tell a virgin from how they write a sex scene?

Load your weapons and state your opinions...