Regimenting Bodies, Regulating Lives: Fatness, gender, and relationships of power in makeover television shows from Finland and the United States

This dissertation examines fatness in weight-loss makeover shows from Finland and the US, focusing on three shows from Finland (Jutta ja superdieetit – Jutta and the Super Diet, Jutta ja puolen vuoden superdieetit – Jutta and the Half-Year Super Diet, and Rakas, sinusta on tullut pullukka – Honey, You’ve Become Chubby) and two shows from the US (Revenge Body with Khloé Kardashian and Fat Chance). Inspired by feminist critical discourse analysis and Foucauldian discourse analysis, it analyses how the ways of representing the fat female body construct, reproduce, and potentially reflect societal discourses of gender, power, relationships, and identity. It aims to uncover structures of control that are enacted on the fat body in general and the fat female body in particular by asking “how are the representations of fat female bodies in makeover TV shows in Finland and the US connected to societal discourses of gender, power, and the body?”. Situated within the context of feminist media studies and feminist fat studies, it takes a critical perspective with the aim of revealing and challenging normative beliefs, inequalities, and oppressive structures.

By shifting the focus from a US-centric perspective onto Finnish makeover shows, this research aims to broaden the field of fat studies by opening up critical space in a debate which has largely been dominated by US and UK scholars. It investigates how societal norms concerning the body, relationships, and gender are expressed in different shows and different cultural contexts, thereby seeking to uncover both similarities and differences. By connecting the analysis of the regulation of the body to its broader implications for an individual’s life, especially concerning romantic relationships, this research helps to grasp the all-encompassing imperative of change visible in the shows.

This dissertation is made up of a summary chapter as well as three original articles, which are attached at the end. The summary chapter delves deeper into the theoretical concepts and cultural contexts surrounding the topic of women and fatness, and presents the data and methods, summaries of the articles, and a discussion of the findings. Each article deals with one to two makeover shows and approaches the shows through sub-questions, which enables a multifaceted analysis of the issues at hand.

The main theoretical concepts that form the basis for this research are control (over fat women and their bodies, as detailed especially in article I); normalisation (of bodies and lives, as detailed in article II); and liminality in connection with fatness and singlehood (highlighted in article III but present in all three articles). Article I examines the Finnish shows Jutta and the Super Diet and Jutta and the Half-Year Super Diet. Based on Foucault’s theories of surveillance, control, and power (Foucault 1980; 1990; 1995), this article asks questions regarding structures of surveillance and control as well as the relationship between the participants and the expert and the importance of the expert. Article II examines the Finnish show Honey, You’ve Become Chubby and Revenge Body with Khloé Kardashian from the US. This article deals with questions surrounding the importance of the female body for a (romantic) relationship and examines underlying normalising structures and implications, leaning on Foucault’s theories of normalisation (Foucault, 1995). Article III examines the show Fat Chance from the US, looking at the fat body in the context of impermanence, taking as its theoretical basis Van Gennep’s (1960) and Turner’s (1969) theories concerning rites of passage and liminality as well as theories of fatness as liminal (see e.g., Harjunen, 2009; LeBesco, 2004) and singlehood as liminal (Lahad, 2012).

The enactment of control over the fat female body became visible in all the shows, executed in and through different relationships of power. The research suggests that controlling the fat female body and aiming at normalising it – and with it, individuals’ lives – remains an important feature of dieting makeover shows. The similarity in the shows’ contents, representations, and constructions, regardless of the country of origin, points towards similar views on norms regarding the ideal (female) body as well as appropriate behaviour and lifestyle. This dissertation offers a novel perspective on the extent of control that is enacted on fat women’s bodies and lives, highlighting how women’s lives are regulated through the regulation of their bodies.