Aurélien Daudi
Department of Sport Sciences, Malmö University
Among the most prominent digital subcultures emerging out of the rise of social media is one centered around the concept of fitness. Content within this social media fitness culture, known as “fitspiration” (an amalgamation of the words fitness and inspiration), often showcases idealized body types and fitness achievements in terms of the attainment of certain visual attributes. Psychological research reveals a correlation between exposure to such idealized images and negative body image, decreased self-esteem, and increased anxiety and depressive symptoms. These effects are disproportionately experienced by young women, who are the most active demographic on photo-based social media platforms and the primary consumers of fitspiration content.
While fitspiration ostensibly promotes a healthy lifestyle, it also conspicuously emphasizes sexualized self-presentations. Crucially, among its female majority user base, this self-sexualization is often portrayed as a form of empowerment, aligning with third-wave feminism and postfeminist ideals that equate empowerment with the freedom of unrestrained expressions of sexuality. In this article, I begin by identifying this idea of empowerment as being one of the more prominent justifications surrounding the characteristic sexualized self-expressions of fitspiration. The purpose of the article is to critically examine this proposed notion of female empowerment, as it is propagated within fitspiration. Drawing on Nietzsche’s philosophy of power and its connection to his conception of human flourishing, I argue that this prevalent notion of empowerment, which relies heavily on self-sexualization and has cemented itself as part of the wider social media repertoire, is fundamentally flawed. In outlining this revaluation, the article also aims to conceptualize a more robust and authentic form of empowerment capable of fostering genuine self-improvement and psychological well-being.
The article briefly addresses how the idea of female empowerment through sexualization might have become so deeply rooted in modern culture. Invoking the philosopher Charles Taylor’s concept of the social imaginary, I explain that the notion “sexualization as empowerment” is part of a set of shared, often unexamined beliefs that shape societal behavior and perceptions. Intrinsic to the idea of the social imaginary is the understanding that, rather than being formed through rational deliberation, these beliefs are unconsciously intuited through cultural narratives. I suggest that among the many residues that variously stem from the sexual revolution can be discerned an ideational heritage which has significantly influenced and shaped the content of the present social imaginary, normalizing sexual displays and linking sexual expression to empowerment, while simultaneously positioning modesty as something repressive.
This conceptualization of empowerment is then challenged by extensive reference to a broad body of research highlighting the negative psychological and social impacts of self-sexualization on women. Studies have shown that self-sexualization tends to lead to self-objectification, where individuals internalize an observer’s perspective of their bodies as sexual objects. This internalization often results in detrimental outcomes, such as developing feelings of shame toward one’s own body, higher levels of depression and anxiety, and even reduced cognitive performance. Furthermore, research shows that reliance on external validation through social media can reinforce harmful feedback loops, perpetuating a cycle of self-objectification and dissatisfaction. For these empirically grounded reasons, I suggest that the deeply embedded belief in sexualization as empowerment needs to be critically re-evaluated to understand its true implications on an individual and societal level. Thus, I turn to Nietzsche.
Drawing on Nietzsche’s concept of the will to power, I propose an alternative understanding of empowerment. According to Nietzsche, the attainment of true power involves the internal harnessing of power channeled in the pursuit of self-overcoming, rather than dependence on external validation or displays of its outward effects. It entails sublimating the drives to power that seek to exert themselves externally, often in the most convenient and non-demanding ways possible, and discipling the desires which otherwise become their natural outlets. In this light, the form of empowerment promoted by fitspiration, which is contingent on outward social approval derived by employing the body as an object of sexual appeal, is deemed inadequate. Hence, a reconsideration of this philosophically flawed paradigm of female-specific empowerment is called for. What is required is a novel conception of a universal, non-discriminatory concept of empowerment that transcends gender and emphasizes self-control, psychological resilience, independence, and the intrinsic psychological potential of the human mind.
The critique forwarded here aligns with early feminist perspectives that challenge the commodification of female bodies and the superficial notion of empowerment through sexualization. The article underscores the necessity of recognizing the complexities and potential pitfalls of conflating sexual self-expression with empowerment, arguing for a redefined and more philosophically compelling conceptualization of what empowerment entails and how it is achieved. By leveraging Nietzsche’s psychological insights, promoting a framework inspired by his ethics of power, it envisions a shift toward an understanding of individual self-empowerment that moves beyond self-sexualization and shallow notions of freedom, prioritizing internal strength and self-mastery over contingent external validation. Were these perspectives to integrate into the prevailing social imaginary, it would render the current dictates of empowerment in fitspiration – not to mention the broader culture of self-representational photo-based social media – unjustifiable. In doing so, it would serve to inoculate the predominantly female users representative of the behaviors in question against some of the ill-effects associated with what is falsely presented as the expression of their freedom and power par excellence.
Copyright © Aurélien Daudi 2024
