Final Paper- Fat Feminism in Hairspray

Feminism is the idea that all women should have social, political, and intellectual rights just like men. There is a specific movement within the Feminism movement that has been debated for years. How women look in movies, specifically their weight is discussed in Fat Feminism. There are rarely overweight women that have the lead role in movies. Society has an image in their mind that actresses have to be skinny and gorgeous. When in reality more than half of our population is overweight. In the movie Hairspray an overweight teen named Tracy Turnblad defies societies norms so that she can dance on a popular television show. The female body has been critiqued for hundreds of years in our cultural. The overweight feminism movement is bringing awareness to the fact that you don’t have to be skinny to have a lead role in a movie. There are rarely lead roles given to overweight women in the movie industry but when they are they are stereotyped and are harassed by at least one of the skinny characters in the movie.

Hairspray, the movie, came out in 2007 and is a musical comedy film. The main character is a heavy set girl named Tracy Turnblad. All she dreams about is dancing on the 1960’s rock ‘n’ rock Corny Collins Show. In the film there are only two principal “female” roles and they are the two heavy set women. Tracey’s mother, Edna, who is oddly played by John Travolta, is extremely insecure about her weight and has not been outside in over ten years because she is afraid of what the neighbors will say about her. When Tracy’s goes and tells her mom that she wants to try out to be a dancer on the television show her mother shatters her dreams by telling her, “they don’t pick people like us, they will hurt you” (Hairspray) one of the main heavy set characters is played by a man. That is a slap in the face for fat feminism. They fight for overweight women to get roles in movies and when there is a lead role for one they give it to a man that dresses up in a fat suit.



Positive Tracy doesn’t understand why her mother would say that and runs to her room crying. She likes to see the good in people and refuses to see the negative aspects of mankind. Her soft spoken father encourages her to try out for the show and the following day she goes to the television studio. She takes her slim best friend Penny along to watch her. She starts dancing and the pageant winning size zero stage manager goes up to her and says, “your short and stout so were kicking you out” (Hairspray) and pushes her to the door. She was kicked out of the try-outs because of the way she looked and because of society’s standards, “the body- what we eat, how we dress, the daily rituals through which we attend to the body- is a medium of culture” (Bordo 2240) The Stage manager is so concerned about how the teenagers are portrayed on camera that she wants the “perfect” looking girl, not an overweight one dancing on the show. Tracy was crushed but doesn’t let that comment bring her down. Tracy plays the role of the upbeat overweight teen that doesn’t care when people make fun of her. Her character is unrealistic, it doesn’t show her true feelings. Getting picked on everyday for being fat would make anyone cry or angry but she doesn’t show any emotion.

Tracy ran into her crush Link who is the star dancer on the television show and he said that she should come by the studio to show the host her dance moves because she was very good.




Tracy than breaks into song stating that “everyone says a girl that looks like me can’t win his heart” (Hairspray) She is determined to break the stereotype of the heavy girl can’t get the good looking guy, “this heavy weight champion will take the prize” (Hairspray) She is put down numerous times for liking Link and told that “he won’t like me because of what they see but I know hell like the inside of me” (Hairspray). “Fat feminists” focus on women who are discriminated against because of their size. “The body is a powerful symbolic form, a surface on which the central rules, hierarchies and even metaphysical commitments of a culture are inscribed and thus reinforced” (Bordo 2240) Amber judges Tracy so harshly because that is what her mother taught her. Society has looked down against overweight people and has shut them out of opportunities because they are overweight. Throughout the movie Tracy is repeatedly told that she will not get the guy and not dance on television because of the way she looks. She is determined to break the boundaries and open up peoples minds. Just because she is heavier than the other dancers doesn’t mean she isn’t as good, she is better than all of them. Size discrimination should not be taken lightly and it is associated with, and is similar to racism, sexism, and ageism. The characters in this movie takes this topic of size discrimination too lightly because they were consistently picking on Tracy calling her the, “great white whale” (Hairspray) these jokes were not funny but Tracy seemed to brush them off and continue to fight for what she wanted.

Tracy goes to the studio and dances for the host Corny and he likes her so much that he puts her on. Penny runs to tell Tracy’s parents and her mother shouts, “imagine my little girl regular at last!” (Hairspray) Since Tracy is on the show now the ratings have gone up because the audience can relate to her and like that there is a “regular” girl in the show. Tracy is entered to dance for a contest for “Miss Teenage Hairspray”. Her competition is Link’s girlfriend, the wealthy and blonde beauty Amber, who’s mother is the stage manager. When Corny announces live on air that Tracy is in the competition Amber laughs and says, “but you have to vote for a person not one of the Himalayas” (Hairspray) Throughout the movie we see Amber bully Tracy because of her weight. She calls her derogatory names and plays pranks on her just because she is different.

Tracy’s popularity continues to sore with the public and she gets a phone call for the owner of “hefty hideaway” who asks her to be the spokes girl for his store. Tracy is so excited and asks her mother, Edna to be her manager and come with her to the clothing store. Edna quickly shuts down and says, “I don’t want to be seen like this. I will leave the house after my next diet” (Hairspray)



Tracy becomes disappointed in her mother and tries to convince her to embrace her body and to be proud of herself like she is. She finally gets her to go to the shop with her and the manager grabs a plate of donuts and says “here you can have as many as you want”(Hairspray) The store owner dresses both of the up in pink glittery pink dresses and they are feeling great about themselves. Though, “The film luxuriates in the joys of eating (donuts served on a platter at the plus-size women’s clothing store) and dieting is something to escape, not observe.” ( Givhan, Feminist Law) This Store owner is using Tracy and her mother to get business. They are consistently criticized about their weight and he gives them a plate of donuts because that is what he thinks they will enjoy. That store owner stereotyped them and thought nothing of it.

Tracy and her mother run into Amber and her mother. Edna tells Amber’s mother that she is so grateful that she put her on the television show when Amber’s mother says, “she certainly has redefined our standards” (Hairspray) Amber laughs when her mother takes a dig at Tracy and says, “nice outfits, you will certainly stop traffic in that” (Hairspray) Tracy‘s mom has an unhealthy way of thinking about her body. We see her struggle with loving herself and her body the entire time in the movie. She even tried to push her husband away because she thinks that she is too fat even when he tried to tell her she is beautiful and loves the way she looks. She cares more about what society thinks than her own family, she never listens to them when he tell her she looks nice or asks her to go out, she just hides at home. “this describes our contemporary aesthetic ideal for women, an ideal whose obsessive pursuit has become the central torment of many women’s lives” (Bordo 2241) Edna is the perfect example of this. She is at war with herself because of her weight. She doesn’t embrace her body till the very last scene in the movie.

When Amber finds out that her boyfriend has a crush on Tracy she throws in his face, “you could get sponsored by Good Year as her dance partner”. (Hairspray) Link leaves Amber for Tracy and during a song he tells her, “I am in love with you no matter what you weight”(Hairspray). “it makes a powerful statement that even heavier women can get the hot guy, fame, and happiness” (Givhan, Feminist Law)



During the entire movie everything is revolved around Tracy’s weight. She is judged constantly because of how she looks but she didn’t let society’s standards stop her from getting what she wanted. During the last song Tracy was singing about her weight and said, “you cant stop my happiness because I like the way I am” (Hairspray). Also her mother made a special appearance in a little dress and sang out to the crowd, “ if you don’t like the way I look I just don’t give a damn” (Hairspray). At the end of the movie is when we finally see Edna embrace her body and have confidence. She is happy with herself and doesn’t care what society thinks anymore. That is very unrealistic though because everyone struggles with liking the way they look. She just can’t shut off those feelings because they will come back.



Hairspray presents a stereotypical viewpoint throughout the movie of fat feminism. Many interpret this as a feminism movie and the two leading women are overweight. Tracy likes the way she looks and her mother doesn’t so throughout the film we see them struggle with how society views them. Femininity is built and shown differently because of society. Overweight is seen as bad and people are judged because they look different because culture has caused it to be that way.



Works cited
Bordo, Susan. “Unbearable Weight.” 2240-2253. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2010. Print.
Gilbert, Sandra and Gubar, Susan. "The Madwoman in the Attic." 1926-38.The

Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2010. Print.

Givhan, Robin. "July « 2007 « Feminist Law Professors." Feminist Law

Professors. Web. 06 Aug. 2010.

Leitch, Vincent B. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. New York: W.

W. Norton &, 2010. Print