Battling body image at Penn

With a battle over the role of body image at Penn, "Campus Conversations" -- a series of casual discussions hosted by Students Together Against Acquaintance Rape -- kicked off yesterday in the Houston Bistro. The opening discussion, entitled "What's Love got to do With it?" focused on the relationships between body image, love and sexuality. College sophomore Chidinma Ibe, a representative from STAAR, arranged and facilitated the discussion, while a small but vocal group of women voiced their opinions. "There are definitely large groups of girls who are body conscious," College sophomore Rebecca Zisserson said. "But it almost made me more comfortable with myself. I look at how uncomfortable other people are and I don't want to be like that." Most present mentioned that they had become more aware of how they look since arriving at Penn. Zisserson noted that since intelligence, talent and -- in many cases -- wealth, are normal Penn prerequisites, a lot of girls focus on their bodies to keep up the competitive edge. Also present was College senior Ilana Derman, who represented peer education group Guidance for Understanding Image, Dieting and Eating. Derman said that most women are body conscious because they judge themselves by how many guys "like them" or "pay attention to them." But she noted that men are also preoccupied with their bodies. Derman added that an eating disorder is really just a symptom of a greater issue -- a feeling of inadequacy which can affect men as well as women. In fact,10 percent of those affected by eating disorders are men "When you have a cold, you sneeze; when you have a major issue, you get an eating disorder," she said. The media's stress on the superficial also came up during the discussion. The general consensus was that standards of beauty have changed over the last 50 years. "Marilyn Monroe could never be considered beautiful today," Ibe said of the actress, who reportedly wore a size 12. Some, however, were reluctant to blame the media. Zisserson said that women are setting this standard for themselves -- a sort of competitive masochism. "Men still do find Marilyn Monroe attractive," she noted. "I've never heard a guy say, 'I like my women bony.'" "Campus Conversations" will take place every Tuesday at 5 p.m. in Houston Bistro.