Body image in media (FIN)

Our secondary school students studied body images in media throughout the decades, starting at the turn of the 20th century until the early 21st century. Below, you can find the presentations prepared by the students.

Subcultures in Rimini

Dangers of plastic surgeries (Poland)

As a part of their Biology lessons students discussed dangers related to plastic surgeries, its pros and cons and the impact of those operations on the body. Later on, they wrote essays in Polish and English. When this task was finished teachers of English/Polish chose best essays that were put on the blog. You can see them below. 

                                                               “Dangers of plastic surgeries”

In my essay I want to prove that plastic surgery is dangerous. Today many people’s dream is to look young. Now access to plastic surgery is very easy. In almost every town there is a surgical clinic. The prices aren't expensive either.
The first argument why plastic surgery is dangerous is that it is addictive. People think that they are ugly. They haven't got high self - esteem. Many people (often celebrities) irrespectively of price put a lot of effort to look great and still think that they aren't beautiful enough.
Secondly repeated plastic surgery makes people look like "monsters". Many stars ended tragically while using too much of plastic operations: for example Michael Jackson or his sister Latoya Jackson.
The final reason why plastic surgery is dangerous is the fact that plastic surgery exposes human body to side effects, for example scares. Surgeries which are carried out badly can lead to patient's death.
As you can see plastic surgery is really dangerous and people should avoid it.

 "Niebezpieczeństwa operacji plastycznych"

Operacja plastyczna jest korektą rzeczywistych lub odczuwalnych defektów ciała. Coraz większa liczba osób na świecie decyduje się na poprawienie, ulepszenie swojego wyglądu. W ostatnim roku najwięcej operacji plastycznych wykonano w Stanach Zjednoczonych. Wykonano tam 313 tysięcy zabiegów.
Najpopularniejsze formy operacji plastycznych to: wystrzykiwanie w usta kwasu hialuronowego, botoks, usuwanie nadmiaru tłuszczu, korekcja uszu i nosa oraz powiększanie biustu. Większość wykonanych operacji przebiega bezproblemowo, niestety w pewnych przypadkach zdarzają się komplikacje. Czasami są one niegroźne, lecz niektóre mogą zagrozić naszemu życiu lub zdrowiu. Oto powikłania, które mogą wystąpić po każdym nawet najmniejszym zabiegu:
narkoza - miejscowe znieczulenie, narkoza ogólna: następstwem tego mogą być wykwity skórne, paraliż a nawet śmierć
krwotok - krwotok wewnętrzny: jeżeli jest mały sam zostanie zatrzymany, jeżeli jest duży jest już potrzebna interwencja lekarza
infekcja - jest niezwykle rzadka, pojawia się kilka dni po zabiegu, jeśli dojdzie do zakażenia osoba musi być hospitalizowana
blizny - pojawiają się po każdym zabiegu, raczej szybko się goją, ale czasami gojenie trwa do 3 lat.
Po trudniejszych operacjach, takich jak np. powiększanie biustu, dochodzi do innych czasami groźniejszych powikłań tj. twardzina, toczeń, reumatoidalne zapalenie stawów oraz ziarniak. Operacje plastyczne są niezwykle drogie, a zarazem czasami bardzo niebezpieczne. Ceny operacji plastycznych wahają się od 600zł do 15 000zł.
Decydując się na jakąkolwiek operację plastyczną w danej klinice, szpitalu lub ośrodku należy (trzeba!) zapoznać się z opiniami na temat danego miejsca w którym będzie odbywał się zabieg, czy odbywa się on w sterylnym otoczeniu oraz czy lekarz lub osoba, która prowadzi zabieg ma do tego uprawnienia. Pamiętajmy, że nasz wygląd zewnętrzny nie jest ważny jeśli mamy narazić się na jakiekolwiek niebezpieczeństwo.
Zosia Łakomska, klasa IIC

                                                           “Dangers of plastic surgeries”

This essay is about plastic surgery. Nowadays, this is a very popular treatment among music stars, celebrities, actors, and politicians. These procedures are very expensive but more and more people can afford them. However, many do not take plastic surgery seriously. They think it's the same as going to a beauty salon.
These operations are very risky and sometimes complicated. There are side effects, for example a paralyzed face after Botox injections. People want to be young and pretty but they often look worse.
Another disadvantage is that after surgery people aren't more confident and they still feel bad and insecure. Some want to improve other aspects in their appearance and they become addicted to plastic surgeries. They must pay a lot of money for those surgeries.
There are people who want to look like animals, for example a cat woman or a snake man. Sometimes they perform in circuses or television. Some people want to be similar to 'Ken and Barbie' toys. They think only about their appearance and they can do anything to achieve their goal. It can cause financial problems.
Often operations are very painful and stressful. Patients can suffer from depression and need psychological help. Some believe that after operation their life will be better, different, fantastic but in real life nothing changes. That can be very disappointing and annoying.
Moreover, it's not good for children to see that their parents change their appearance. This can cause psychological problems in children.
Summing up, surgeries can be beneficial but they have a lot of negative effects. They are useful for those who had accidents or were seriously ill, not for people who don't like the shape of their noses. We should think over advantages and disadvantages of these procedures before spending a fortune on them.
Piotr  Krupiński  IIB
                                                      
                                                         "Dangers of plastic surgeries"

Every esthetic medical procedure is a surgical intervention that puts a human body at risk of severe side effects. You may often feel pain after the operation and you may also end up with scars. Sometimes a poorly conducted operation may even lead to death of the patient.

It is no true that one or two treatments will be enough, there are many people who cannot stop changing their appearance. You can become addicted to this sort of treatment. This addiction may be due to the fact that beauty treatment often has to be regularly repeated.

The most dangerous operation is the one connected with changes in the face. This can damage facial nerves or cause breathing problems (when you have changed your nose). Changes in the face can make people look differently and reduce their natural beauty.

Currently we see beauty treatment as something very easy, we forget that it is a very serious surgery and may even cause death in the worst case scenario.

Julia Osowska II B

                     Operacje plastyczne - dążenie do piękna czy zagrożenie dla zdrowia i życia?

Mówi się, że dzięki operacjom plastycznym poprawiamy swój wygląd, swoją figurę, a ludzie nas lepiej spostrzegają. Ale czy aby na pewno tak jest? Czy ludzie zapomnieli już o skutkach ubocznych operacji plastycznych?
Moim zdaniem operacje plastyczne nie są dla nas dobre, ponieważ psujemy sobie wygląd, stajemy się ''sztuczni'', ale postaram się to udowodnić w kilku argumentach.
Pierwszym argumentem jest to, że po wielu operacjach plastycznych mogą pojawić się skutki uboczne, np. mocny ból po zabiegach, który może trwać nawet przez kilka dni, a także blizny, które możemy mieć nawet do końca życia.
Drugim argumentem jest psucie sobie wyglądu. Młodzi ludzie, gdy decydują się na operacje, nie rozważają tego, że coś może pójść nie tak, albo że mogą się przez to oszpecić. W wielu przypadkach dzieje się tak, że przez operacje nie stajemy się ładniejsi, lecz jeszcze bardziej pogarszamy swój wygląd.
Kolejnym argumentem jest to, że możemy się od operacji po prostu uzależnić. Niektórzy, gdy zaczną od jednej operacji, cały czas chcą poprawić coś w swoim wyglądzie i nie potrafią powiedzieć tego stanowczego stop!!
Ostatnim argumentem jest upodabnianie się do jakiejś postaci. Niektóre dziewczyny poprzez operacje plastyczne stają się sztuczne, bo np. chcą się upodobnić do lalki Barbie. Oczywiście nie tylko dziewczyny korzystają z różnych zabiegów, ale także chłopcy, mężczyźni. Bardzo znany Michael Jackson chciał mieć białą cerę, a także chciał upodobnić się do Diany Ros. Przez zbyt wiele zabiegów niestety, zmarł.
Według mnie tymi czterema argumentami udowodniłam, że operacje plastyczne to zagrożenie dla życia, a nie dążenie do piękna. Nie warto ich sobie robić.

Uczennica Gimnazjum nr 10

The body image in Finnish art (FIN)

Here is a short description of how body image is conveyed in Finnish art. This is what the students studies as part of their art lessons in autumn and winter 2015. This section focuses on the Finnish Golden Age in art, when the Finnish national art was shaped.

The Finnish Golden Age in art

In Finland, the period between years 1880 and 1910 is called The Finnish Golden Age in art. During this time, the Finnish art was given its own, national shape. At the same time Finnish art reached a high international level. Artists studied in Paris where they got to know the art of painting outside. Inspired by this, artists started to depict their home country, its people, nature and history in their paintings. Topics also included the poor people in the society, people in the countryside and Finland’s untouched forest sceneries. Through new topics, Finnish people learned to notice the beauty and uniqueness of their home country. The art of the Golden Age told stories of Finland and its history to the outside world as well. Art was included when they wanted to show that Finland is a nation among other nations. The most significant figure of this period was Akseli Gallen-Kallela and other top artists such as Pekka Halonen, Albert Edelfelt, Helene Schjerfbeck and Eero Järnefelt.

REALISM

In the Finnish art, the 1880s was the decade of Realism. Back then, artists focused on depicting Finnish nature and countryside. This meant that people and their body image were depicted in a very real way: men doing field work are often depicted very muscular and athletic. On the other hand, the years of famine in the 1880s manifest themselves in the paintings as stomachs swollen by eating bread whose ingredients included pine bark because people couldn’t afford enough regular flour in their bread. The old housewives are depicted as wrinkled and round. During the period of Realism, bodies were depicted as they really were. Nothing was hidden or glorified.

REALISM – EXAMPLE 1:

Akseli Gallen-Kallela – Akka ja kissa / The old woman and the cat (1885)

The model for this piece of art is an old woman from Salo, where Gallen-Kallela started painting.

REALISM - EXAMPLE 2:

Eero Järnefelt – Raatajat rahanalaiset / Poor workers (1893)

Järnefelt painted this work in Lapinlahti. Realism is shown both in the realistic way of depicting the scenery and its contents. Tenant farmers without land of their own are burning the woods to transform them into a slash and burn field.  

REALISM - EXAMPLE 3:

Pekka Halonen – Niittomiehet / Scything men (1891)

Halonen painted this piece in the same manner as French open-air paintings. He depicts his peers doing their work. Pekka Halonen himself was a son of a farmer from Lapinlahti, and this picture was painted in Lapinlahti, too. The country scenery from Savo region and the real people create almost a pious atmosphere in the painting despite the laborious work. The model for the man sharpening his scythe was Halonen’s younger brother Antti. 

EXAMPLE 4: Albert Edelfelt - Eukko pärekoreineen / An old woman with her basket made of shingles (1882)

Edelfelt painted a lot of beautiful women, but the women didn’t represent any particular ideal of beauty. They were quite individual female types. On  the other hand, the depictions of women varied according to the model’s age and social status.  The painting Eukko pärekoreineen is one example of this kind of depictions. The model is Edelfelts’ maid Tajta. The faithful servant is reduced into an anonymous woman. She is a specimen of an old, unsexual and worn-down woman. On the other hand, the style of the painting involves some level of idolization of what a typical peasant woman was like.  

SYMBOLISM

In the 1890s, the social art was replaced by individual experiences and the emphasis on spiritual life. This art movement was called Symbolism, where the artist’s task was to depict the big questions in life metaphorically through symbols. For example Magnus Enckell and Hugo Simberg were influenced by the Symbolism in Paris. The new influences were shown in their work immediately.

SYMBOLISM – EXAMPLE 1:

Hugo Simberg - Köynnöksenkantajat- freskon yksityiskohta / The carriers of a vine – a detail from a fresco

Simberg’s art was very humane. He believed that people lived in a material world, amidst happiness, sadness, guilt and death. In this fresco, 12 boys are carrying a rose vine, which is the metaphor for life with its roses and thorns.  The number of boys refers to the twelve apostles.  The artist depicts people’s different ways to deal with life in these boy figures. The body image conforms to the topic and the deeper meanings. The boys are muscular and in a good shape, strong enough to carry the heavy burden.         

SYMBOLISM – EXAMPLE 2: Hugo Simberg - Köynnöksenkantajat- freskon yksityiskohta / The carriers of a vine  - a detail from a fresco

Some of the boys carry the vine courageously, while others are picking flowers and for some, the burden is too heavy.

ROMANTIC NATIONALISM

The Symbolism of Finnish artists soon transformed into Romantic nationalism in the 1890s. Romantic nationalism means art emphasizing national originality. When the Russian oppression increased, people wanted to defend the rights of the Finns through art as well. Many artists travelled to Eastern Finland and Karelia to find the original Finnish people and culture in the 1890s. This art movement is called Karelianism.

EXAMPLE 1: Akseli Gallen-Kallela – Paanajärven paimenpoika / The shepherd of Paanajärvi (1892) (Romantic nationalism)

Paanajärven paimenpoika was made during Gallen-Kallela’s trip to Kuusamo in the summer of 1892. The end of the age of Realism could already be seen, as the contrast between the gorgeous view and the poor boy is made so obvious. In the works of Romantic nationalism, certain aspects of the body image were distorted or highlighted. Poor people were depicted wearing more ragged clothes than they would really wear, or appearing dirtier. This was made so that the virtues connected with the essence of being Finnish, such as perseverance and diligence, would be even more highlighted. 

EXAMPLE 2: Albert Edelfelt – Kristus ja Mataleena / Christ and Madgalena (1890) (Karelianism)

In this picture, both the poetry from the Finnish national epic Kalevala and the Bible are combined. Madgalena refuses to give water to a shepherd, whom she recognizes to be Christ only after he tells her about all her secret acts. Madgalena’s body image represents a young woman from Karelia. The model for Christ was young Magnus Enckell.

EXAMPLE 3: Akseli Gallen-Kallela – Lemminkäisen äiti / Lemminkäinen’s mother (1897)

This work of art represents Gallen-Kallela’s symbolistic and plain Kalevala phase. It depicts the pain of the mother who is mourning over the body of his dead son Lemminkäinen, who died because of his defiance. It is set on the beach of the river in the underworld. The mother is begging for a drop of honey from a bee to revive his son. The rays of light promise some hope and Lemminkäinen wakes up from the death. The model for the mother was the artist’s own mother, who had been told so many sad news that she was about to burst into tears.  

More pure and bright colours as well as sunlight started to appear in Finnish art at the beginning of the 1900s. Then, the art started to free itself from the Russian political pressure and the heaviness of the Romantic nationalism was set aside. Shape, light and colours were emphasized in paintings. 

EXAMPLE 1: Magnus Enckell – Poikia rannalla (1910) / Boys on the beach

eTwinning conversation (Poland & Italy)

In March Polish and Italian students discussed topics related to dangers of plastic surgeries. This was done as the follow up of their biology/English/Polish lessons devoted to the aforementioned theme. Students were given questions to answer and for 45 minutes they exchanged ideas, sharing the previously gathered knowledge with their pupils from abroad.

Questions given to students:

• Would you like to undergo a plastic operation?
• Why do people want to change their physical appearance? What’s your opinion on that matter?
• Are various forms of body modification forbidden at your school? What’s the reason for it?
• How does society perceive people that differ from other people?
• Are plastic surgeries healthy?