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My son wants to be Spider-Man for Halloween. So, like the procrastinating, non-crafty mother that I am, I went to the store in mid-October to find him a costume. The costume I found had fake, large chest muscles and a six pack—a costume made to look like an extremely strong, sexy man, except this costume was made to fit a 3-4-year-old boy.
I bought the costume anyway, even though it made me somewhat uncomfortable. The reason I bought the costume is that it’s mid-October, and I probably wouldn’t find a better costume anywhere else in time for trick or treating. Then again, I probably wouldn’t have found a superhero costume that didn’t have some kind of feature emphasizing strong muscles. Look at most superheroes in modern times and you will see that their muscles are a defining feature of their look. Ironman, Superman, Wolverine, The Green Lantern, The Flash—all of these superheroes are exponentially more muscular now than in the original drawings.
When we emphasize to boys from a very young age that strong muscles will win them things in life—money, girls, power—we’re sending them the wrong message. The message we’re sending is that the more in line their bodies are with the current beauty ideal of masculinity, the further ahead they will get in life.
When we emphasize to boys from a very young age that strong muscles will win them things in life—money, girls, power—we’re sending them the wrong message.
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Why is no one talking about sexy Halloween costumes for young boys? Why is no one talking about the fact that we are sending the wrong message about body image to our young sons? Why is no one talking about body dysmorphia and how common bigorexia is becoming in not only men but also teenage boys? Shouldn’t we as parents be concerned that the over-emphasis on muscular everything from the age of four might be contributing to unrealistic views of the human body, which then might contribute to disorders like body dysmorphia?
There isn’t enough outrage about what body image issues do to young boys. Case in point: In 2014, Value Village in Vancouver Canada pulled girls’ “sexy Halloween costumes” after a mother complained publicly that the costumes were inappropriate. Outrage poured on social media about the inequality between girls’ and boys’ Halloween costumes and clothing in general. But very few people seemed concerned that certain boys’ Halloween costumes were just as bad. Perhaps these costumes didn’t show as much leg or made boys look like sexy French maids, but nevertheless, these costumes—like my son’s beefed-up Spider-Man—are sending very young boys the message that visibly strong muscles equal social power. That a certain look will help them achieve anything in life. That their muscles will win them superhero status.
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After I brought my son’s costume home, the interesting part is that my son tried it on and then complained about the muscles. He asked me to physically remove them. Granted, he probably just found the really bad sewing job uncomfortable, but it made me happy that he wasn’t willing to wear this ridiculously flawed representation of what a boy’s chest and abdominal muscles should look like at age four, even if he is supposed to be a superhero.
To the costume designers of my son’s Halloween costume, I say this: You have the power to help shape the body image of thousands of young boys. You have the power to change views of masculinity, which are ever-so-subtly ingrained in our culture, with each increased set of stuffed pectorals in your costumes. You hold a lot of power in your hands. You must remember that with great power comes great responsibility.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
So, superhero costume has fake muscles = sexy toddler with body image issues. Got it.
While I support more healthy body image representation for boys and girls, boys Halloween costumes are not marketed or specifically called, ‘sexy’, ‘handsome”, “manly” in nearly the same way girls are as ‘sexy”, “pretty” and “cute”. For goodness sake, you can literally be a sexy piece of pizza or a sexy Nemo as a girl. That crap just doesn’t happen to boys in the same way. We culturally do not sexualize boys as much as we do young girls and I believe it’s disengenous to suggest that we do. There is in fact an inequality in girls costumes vs boys.… Read more »
Auto-correct cracks me up sometimes…I did not mean to say “mama unlined” lol.. that was suppose to be “masculine”. I am a crappy typer on my iPad. Trying to get my thoughts out before auto-refresh.
Man, Erin. On this we completely agree. Lol. This site is so totally weird!!!!!
My answer to your last question: I suspect more than just a few men have a muscle fetish. Batman’s gotta have lots of muscle, or else! I agree with you that young girls are sexualized more than young boys. But the problems that some boys face are just as emotionally painful. Ask nonathletic boys how it is to grow up in a culture that is saturated with sports. It can be quite painful. I’d recommend that those who are interested in this cultural phonomenon read The Last Boys Picked: Helping Boys Who Don’t Play Sports Survive Bullies and Boyhood by… Read more »
Hi Bill – so you answer to my question is that batman and Spider-Man’s figures shouldn’t change to become more realistic? Would men support their favorite action heros drawn with more diverse and realistic bodies? I have no doubt it’s painful for boys who suffer from body image issues. Girls and women have been trying to tell men for decades now what if feels like to have unrealistic expectations about your body placed on you literally, everywhere. Women were told, “it’s just fantasy”, ” it’s normal for men to like very beautiful and young women”, “men are biologically predisposed to… Read more »
@ Erin
“Would men support their favorite action heros drawn with more diverse and realistic bodies? ”
At one point they did. It was the women’s movement that complained that a skinny, 70 year old, man could still get tough guy roles.
Sorry I’m late in replying. I’ve been preoccupied. I wasn’t answering the question of whether Batman’s and Spiderman’s physiques should be redrawn along realistic lines. I was merely trying to explain the popularity of the current steroidal images. By the way, Batman should be expected to have a mesomorphic build since he needs physical strength for all of his crime-busting feats. In the 1960s when I was a teenager, Batman was drawn along such realistic lines. I’m been sympathetic to women for decades. Hey, in 1964 when I was in junior high, I thought Senator Margaret Chase Smith should be… Read more »
“While I support more healthy body image representation for boys and girls, boys Halloween costumes are not marketed or specifically called, ‘sexy’, ‘handsome”, “manly” in nearly the same way girls are as ‘sexy”, “pretty” and “cute”. For goodness sake, you can literally be a sexy piece of pizza or a sexy Nemo as a girl. That crap just doesn’t happen to boys in the same way.” So a boy who has body image issues because he’s physique is supposed to be functional and not sexy is being affected differently than a girl. How so because he may tale PEDS instead… Read more »
Why? We Stopped caring about our boys about 40 years ago. Before that, they were tools, not humans. Those that did not “measure up” were bullied, abused, forced to either fall in line or be squashed. I know. I’ve seen both sides of this issues, and because of such, it was amazing seeing the change, my status change when I became that “spider man”. We do the same to our girls, but the difference is that we see that, and we’ve been working on it since, “The beauty myth” was written. Here? You’ve touched on something that we simply have… Read more »
“The message we’re sending is that the more in line their bodies are with the current beauty ideal of masculinity, the further ahead they will get in life.”
That’s a true message. The sociological studies show this. Plus, maintaining their body will help them live longer.
Hey, Josh, are you a prime example of muscularity? Mariana is simply saying that boys should not base their sense of self-worth on the size of their muscles. Such a preoccupation can lead to psychological problems. Needless to say, exercise is essential to good health. (I’ve spent a small fortune on personal trainers myself.) But I suspect your shallow assertion is a matter of cultural bias instead of a benevolent concern for good health. Your assertion is also laughably wrong. All one has to do is look at the successful men in our society. Most of them aren’t athletic, and… Read more »
The last word of the fourth paragraph should be “specimen,” not “definition.”
As a man who has suffered from negative body image for decades, I thank you for your message. Boys are hurt by this cultural conditioning. Especially if their fathers are not involved in their upbringing.
You’re right of course, but goid luck to try making that point in public. Any public. Friends, family, a party gathering. It is SO INGRAINED about boys, and the stereotypes. The blue, trucks, sports, strength and I could go on and on. And make another view and they’ll all look at you like you’re from an alien planet. They don’t see this because of the overwhelming drenching in this ocean of indoctrination.
Comes from only examining one side of the gender issue, what hurts women, rather than how can we improve life for everyone
Trey, I agree with you that we should strive to improve life for everyone – men as well as woman. That goes without saying. I’ll even admit that certain issues that pertain to boys and men have been overlooked or even deliberately ignored. But the rigid definition of masculinity that Mark speaks of was established long before there was any women’s movement. In fact, many (if not MOST) of those who define masculinity in terms of physical strength are anti-feminist traditionalists or conservatives. As I was growing up, those who either were a source of pain in my life (including… Read more »