The previous post explored the idea that perhaps willpower is a neutral quality that can be either helpfully used, or dreadfully exploited. It has a dual nature, like so many things in life, as portrayed by the ancient yin-yang symbol.
The piece also proposed that no matter what ailed our subject in the years when her weight bounced up and down, or soared as high as 237 pounds, her accomplishments in several fields are undeniable. Whatever else might be thought, or said, about her, one thing is for certain: Oprah Gail Winfrey has never experienced a shortage of the energy we know as willpower.
Some might point out that many people have struggled with weight issues, so why choose her as a case study? But… is there anyone more suitable? Data is the basis of research, and who else on the planet do we have more information about, and more pictures of? And just as an extra bonus, Oprah happens to be a very sharing (some might say over-sharing) individual when it comes to revealing facts about herself. How else would we know how much she weighed in 1992?
Speaking of oversharing, that 1988 fat-wagon show-and-tell session that she later regretted was actually brilliant. (Third photo down on this website: TV is a visual medium; movement is an essential part of it, and what else could seize the attention like a ginormous 67-pound blob of fat in a little red wagon?
A mortifying fiasco
But in the history of show business, many a brilliant publicity stunt has turned out to be an embarrassing mistake, which is what happened here. Before long, Oprah had to admit that the benefits of four months on a liquid diet had gone into reverse the moment she started eating normally again. A recent article by Clare Stephens, Executive Editor at Mamamia, articulates the two distinct reasons why the incident was so regrettable. Years later (2011), as a guest on Entertainment Tonight, the star described it as “One of the biggest ego trips of my life” because:
The ego was my belief that being in those Calvin Klein jeans made me worthy as a human being, or more valuable, or made me better.
But disproportionate self-regard, however pathological it might be, is an individual problem, and a matter for discussion with one’s spiritual advisor or psychologist. The second reason why Oprah called it a mistake is much more far-reaching, especially for one whose sphere of influence is the entire planet, as Stephens explains. It was tantamount to an accusation, a stunt that stigmatized fat to an audience of millions of humans, mainly women, with the implication that they too could shed their extra poundage if only they cared enough and were smart enough to make the required effort.
Messing with their self-esteem
As Oprah later acknowledged, the wagon demonstration basically “set a standard for people watching that I nor anybody else could uphold.” But rather than reining in an unhealthy tendency and cutting short a harmful trend of thought, the wagon episode was only the start of further years of maintaining and upholding a diet culture that “has far more to do with aesthetics than health.”
Oprah’s famous quotation about how “all the success doesn’t mean anything if you can’t fit into your clothes” was a scathing indictment of women (and men) everywhere. It belittled wonderful parents who happen to be fat, regardless of how beloved and beautifully raised their children might be. It denigrated overweight workers who have no time or money to join a gym. It dismissed overweight artists, no matter how outstanding their creations might be. It criticized people who struggle with the genetic misfortune of being born with large frames and bodily systems that do not process food optimally.
“It means the fat won,” Oprah declared, which amounted to labeling a vast number of her devoted fans as losers. But, as Stephens points out, Oprah was not an “aberration,” not just some weirdo who hated fat people and didn’t mind letting them know — but a particularly noticeable individual articulating the mindset of a fat-hating culture.
Your responses and feedback are welcome!
Source: “In 1985 Joan Rivers asked Oprah a Question,” Mamamia.com, 05/13/24
Image by Vic/Attribution 2.0 Generic
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