Body image Quote by Megan Abbott
““All those posters and PSAs and health class presentations on body image and the way you can burst blood vessels in your face and rupture your esophagus if you can’t stop ramming those sno balls down your throat every night, knowing they’ll have to come back up again, you sad weak girl. Because of all this, Coach surely can’t tell a girl, a sensitive, body-conscious teenage girl, to get rid of the tender little tuck around her waist, can she? She can. Coach can say anything. And there’s Emily, keening over the toilet bowl after practice, begging me to kick her in the gut so she can expel the rest, all that cookie dough and cool ranch, the smell making me roil. Emily, a girl made entirely of donut sticks, cheese powder, and haribo. I kick, I do. She would do the same for me.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The End of Everything, 2017
A narrator describes a teenage girl's obsessive binge eating, using graphic imagery to critique body image pressures and the harshness of self‑judgment.
In simple terms: Girl’s binge eating is harshly portrayed.
Key Takeaway
Address unhealthy coping and body shame.
Themes
body image
eating disorder
critique
humor
Mood
dark
satirical
Type
literary
social commentary
When to use this quote
- school counseling
- health education
- support groups
Key Concepts
psychology
social pressure
Questions to Reflect On
- How does satire affect empathy?
- What healthier coping mechanisms can be taught?
A Different Perspective
Graphic language may alienate some readers.
![“I get a lot of flak for it... people saying [my body] is not normal for a girl... But I'm okay with it. I think it's because I was a gymnast for eight years, from ages four to 12. My body was made before my bones were fully grown. Gymnasts are short, stocky, muscular powerhouses.” quote by Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/e11/pink-2472_age_i-get-a-lot-of-flak-for-it-people-saying_54922.jpg)
