Includes bibliographical references (pages 317-363) and index.
Contents
New American creed: I watch my weight, eat right, and exercise -- New American creed re-examined: too close to the bone -- When thin wasn't in: a selective overview of fashion and beauty, antiquity to 1830 -- Thin and fat: America 1830-1900 -- Thin preference begins: 1900-1947 -- Preference becomes prejudice: the war on fat begins, 1950-1960 -- Prejudice becomes myth: 1960-1970 -- Health/exercise ethic emerges -- Rise of food fetishism -- Her body must be thin, firm, and beautiful -- Obsession becomes religion: the fitness epidemic -- Why thin is never thin enough -- Prejudice exposed -- Look to the future: the golden mean restored?