Where are the fat females in cartoons?

The other night I was watching TV when I saw an ad for a new adult cartoon show called The Cleveland Show. Normally I wouldn’t pay much attention to this type of thing, but something caught my attention and I couldn’t stop thinking about it: The male characters in this show are really fat, and the female characters are slim to average. It got me thinking about other adult cartoon shows like The Simpsons, King of the Hill and Family Guy, and I realized that in all these shows there are some seriously fat male characters, and little-to-no fat female characters.

To prove my point, I came up with this nifty little list.

The Simpsons
Fat male characters: Homer, Bart, Chief Wiggum, Dr. Hibbert, Nelson, Comic Shop Guy and Barney.
Fat female characters: Patty and Selma


Family Guy
Fat male characters: Peter Griffin and Chris Griffin
Fat female characters: none

King of the Hill
Fat male characters: Hank Hill, Bobby Hill and Bill Dautrieve
Fat female characters: none

The Cleveland Show
Fat male characters: Cleveland and Cleveland Jr.
Fat female characters: none

So, a quick tally shows that on these four shows there are 14 fat male characters and two fat female characters. Why the discrepancy?

We all know there are serious double standards in our society when it comes to fat.
We fear female fat and forgive male fat. Fat men can easily get married, find a good job, and generally be successful in life, but the same isn’t true for fat women.

It seems that the cartoon world is simply portraying how we think about fatness in the real world: essentially, that it doesn’t really matter if a man is fat, and fat women are… well… invisible. And when they do exist, as in the case with Patty and Selma, they are single, lonely, childless and unsuccessful.

Highlights (and Lowlights) 2009! Your Thoughts!

What were the most notable feminist events/headlines of 2009? Next week's show is a look back at the year's highlights (and lowlights). Your input is crucial! Tell us about which matters stood out for you or women in general... locally, nationally and globally.

We want you to a.) leave a comment below, b.) post your thoughts on the Yeah, What She Said Facebook Page or c.) send an e-mail to yeahwhatshesaid@gmail.com.

Be sure to tune in this coming Monday, 8:30pm MST on CJSW 90.9 FM in Calgary or www.cjsw.com elsewhere for the Yeah, What She Said Retrospective Edition: 2009!

Shouts-out to contributors will be in full effect:)

2010 in a castle

looking forward to my flight home tomorrow...home as in toronto. weird to say i've lived longer in toronto than in my old hometown saskatoon.

this year me and my loves will be celebrating 2010 in a castle!!! yes a castle folks! Toronto's one and only Casa Loma....built by a man back in the day who wanted to impress his wife... now he can impress us all this year and hopefully help us find some love of our own. Can't wait for this night to come! Still unsure of what I want to wear... I will probably find something in my own closet because this holiday season has given my wallet a beating. Here's one of style.com's top 2009 dresses worn here by Mary Kate Olsen. I love it, especially her hair.

what's everyone else's new years plans? and outfits? any new years resolutions out there besides trying to burn off all those calories from mashed potatoes and stuffing? i haven't given much thought to my resolution...

Fashion & Feminism: Will They Be Friends?

This article on feminism and fashion is a bit old but very relevant for me these days. It briefly discusses Fresh Lipstick: Redressing Fashion and Feminism, a book by University of Illinois professor Linda M. Scott. A woman's interest in the way she looks and the possibility that this interest can be used to question her integrity as a feminist is a fascinating investigation, I find. I've been musing over this subject a lot and I want to know what other women's thoughts are. In a previous post observing riot grrl Tobi Vail's thoughts on the matter, I alluded to my personal battles with fashion and feminism wondering, at points, if the battle was fictitious; forged within myself in order to convince my inner monologue that I was indeed only a real feminist if I neglected the oppressive culture purportedly established by the fashion industry.
However, I still don't really think I've talked that much about it with other women, nor have I heard many firsthand opinions on the matter being voiced by my fellow feminists. I adore dressing up. I have time and time again come to realizations on how what we wear speaks wild volumes about our identities... sexually, intellectually, and influencially. I can't help but see "fashion" as a mysterious and very beautiful artform - a documentation of human history as with body modification, paintings and photographs. Are these not things that feminists have the freedom to enjoy and acknowledge unforgivingly? Where do we stand in this whole thing?

fashion week

now that i have so much time on my hands with relaxing at my parents house i am just pooping out posts hahaha...
here are some pictures from earlier this fall during the LG Toronto Fashion Week.
here's some from the men's GOTSTYLE show...



got a vip pass during the show and was able to hit up the free bar...and hit on models. it was glorious until i found out he was not interested...and 18. HAHAHA

here