Self-authorship

"There are some ways in which serious athletic training disassociates or alienates an athlete from her body, a way in which athletes, male or female, are taught to regard their bodies as productive machines from and of which they are both separate and in control, both completely immersed in and alienated from, and this experience is largely unique to the generation post-Title IX. Serious athletic training paradoxically produces a profound sense of self-authorship of one's body (Heywood & Dworkin, pp. 86-87)."

Heywood and Dworkin explore the complex and sometimes contradictory relationship between an athlete and her body in Bodies, Babes, and the WNBA. They assert that because the athlete has disciplined herself to believe that she is sole owner of her body and its athletic ability/potential, she is likely to be manipulated in her photo shoots. The finished product of the shoot is a highly sexualized, objectified portrayal of the athlete.

I think this idea of self-authorship and manipulation exists for all women. Our embodied experience is so closely tied to our identity. Physiology and mental states certainly are not mutually exclusive. For instance, a depressed mood may manifest itself in aches and pains. We also have conscious control of many of the ways we use our bodies. Enjoying life as we move through space may lead many of us to believe, to an extent, that we are the sole owners of our bodies.

As a teenager I was aware of my ability to make choices about the way I present myself. My image meant so much to me and I was sure that I was in control. In retrospect I understand that so much of what I chose to wear and even how I chose to pose was heavily influenced by images circulating throughout the media. I was so easily manipulated into consuming an image that I thought I had created. I think this shows why it is so important to have media literacy programs available to kids so that they can learn to be careful consumers of media.