Freshman Seminar UCOL 1022.015

“Body Image vs. Reality”

My name is Yaisa Mann ([log in to unmask]).  I am a Ph.D. candidate in the English department and will be teaching a class at OU titled “Body Image vs. Reality”, which is listed under UCOL 1022.015. If are a freshman or know of incoming freshmen, please recommend my class to them! It is worth 2 credit hours and will be a great foundation course that will explore body image, a hot topic for both men and women at the college level, and we will use an interdisciplinary approach to focus on this topic by looking at different female cultural experiences relating to body image. We will address questions such as:

1. Why is there so much focus on body image in our society?

2. Where does the notion of an “ideal” body come from?

3. How does the ideal image of a female’s body differ in other cultures?

4. How does this compare to the ideal image of a man’s body?

5. Who controls the images that we see?

6. What does it mean to be a female and what does self esteem mean for females from different racial/ethnic groups in different social settings?

7. What is beauty?

8. Is there any relationship between beauty and popularity, or beauty and self esteem?

9. What defines beauty?

To answer these questions, the class will use media, cultural traditions, and fashion trends. And we will focus on various ways females deal with these external pressures, which can lead to plastic surgery, eating disorders, and a damaged self esteem. The class will combine brief lectures, guest speakers, small and large group discussions, film, music, and homework assignments that include journals, readings, and group projects.