Sarai Walker Explained

Sarai Walker is a writer[1] whose book Dietland was identified as one of Entertainment Weeklys 10 Best books of 2015,[2] and has subsequently been turned into a TV series.[3] [4] She has published articles in The New York Times,[5] The Washington Post,[6] The Guardian,[7] and Refinery29.[8] Walker is a fat positive activist and her writings reflect an attempt to reclaim the word fat as a mere bodily description—like tall or short.[9]

Life and education

Walker grew up in California and Utah,[10] and is now based in New Mexico.[11] Walker received her M.F.A. in creative writing from Bennington College, and her Ph.D. in English from the University of London (2005).[11] Walker started out writing at teen and women's magazines, and later wrote for Our Bodies, Ourselves.[12]

Fat Acceptance Movement and activism

Walker is an adamant supporter of rights and dignity for fat people.[13] As such, she frequently speaks on the assumptions others make about her life because of her body.[14] Ranging from assuming the types of exercises, or lack thereof, to the type of diet she eats, Walker is adamant that people can be healthy at any size and that the mistreatment of her body is a political issue.

Walker also believes that literature has not adequately written about fat women. Her first encounters of fat characters in film always embodied somewhat of a tragedy. If it was murder out of jealousy, being the selfless friend to the beautiful leading character by helping him/her “grow” as a person, or embarking on a desperate journey of losing weight out of self-hatred. Fat people in film usually carried sadness and pity within themselves.[15] Dietland was thus an attempt to cover some of the missing elements in American literature that pertain to fat women. Plum, the main character in Dietland, is a 300-pound woman.[11] Walker also specifically wanted to emphasize that fatness is not always a sign that a person has had trauma,[11] stripping the definition of fatness from its common connotations, and specifically attempting to remove the fundamental stereotype that fat is synonymous with unhealthy. Naming the phenomenon of those who refuse to think fat people can be healthy, Fat Derangement Syndrome, Walker proposes that individuals often do not look at actual scientific studies in regards to the health of fat people, but are more so operating on societal de-valuing of fat people. Walker has publicly stated that London (where she lived for seven years for grad school) was the most fat shaming city she has ever lived in.

In addition to her participation in the Fat Acceptance Movement, Walker is also a feminist and frequently criticizes the objectification of women, and violence against women.[16] She is also clear that she does not write characters that are "perfect women." As an act of feminism, in fact, she purposefully does not concern herself with likeability issues for her characters, and focuses instead on making characters that are accurately flawed.[17] As such, she creates characters that do not fit into the conventions of likeable womanhood (i.e. skinny and kind), and instead writers characters that do not fit neatly into any category.[17] [14]

Works

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: 'Dietland': A 'Fight Club' For Women That Reclaims The Word 'Fat'. NPR.org. 2018-07-25. en.
  2. News: 10 Best (And 5 Worst!) Books of 2015. EW.com. 2018-07-25. en.
  3. News: 'Dietland': Joy Nash Cast As the Lead In AMC's Drama Series From Marti Noxon. Andreeva. Nellie. 2017-08-16. Deadline. 2018-07-25. en-US.
  4. News: Three Years After It Was Published, Sarai Walker's "Dietland" comes to TV—and It's More relevant Than Ever. Bitch Media. 2018-07-25. en.
  5. News: Opinion Yes, I'm Fat. It's O.K. I Said It.. The New York Times . 6 February 2016 . 2018-07-25. en. Walker . Sarai .
  6. News: The reaction to Trump's fat-shaming reinforces toxic ideas about fatness. Washington Post. en. 2018-07-25.
  7. Web site: Sarai Walker: 'I stopped holding back, and my writing had a new energy'. Walker. Sarai. 2016-08-02. the Guardian. en. 2018-07-25.
  8. News: We Are All Suffering From Fat Derangement Syndrome. 2018-07-25. en.
  9. News: 'You Cannot Shame Me': 2 New Books Tear Down 'Fat Girl' Stereotypes. NPR.org. 2018-07-26. en.
  10. News: 'Dietland': A 'Fight Club' For Women That Reclaims The Word 'Fat'. NPR.org. 2018-07-26. en.
  11. Web site: Dietland author Sarai Walker: 'London is the most fat-shaming place I've been'. Mahdawi. Arwa. 2016-04-27. the Guardian. en. 2018-07-25.
  12. News: Sarai Walker: Fat Positive Activist, Author Of Dietland. Ravishly Media Company. 2018-07-26. en.
  13. News: What "Fat Acceptance" Really Means. 2018-07-26. en.
  14. News: What You Need to Know About "Dietland," Sarai Walker's Debut Novel - Man Repeller. 2016-05-24. Man Repeller. 2018-07-26. en-US.
  15. News: The fat and the furious: will Dietland change the world for fat women? . The Guardian . 5 June 2018 . 2018-08-06. Boyd . Phoebe-Jane .
  16. Web site: 5 Questions for Sarai Walker. Psychology Today. en-US. 2018-07-26.
  17. News: Don't Make Barbie's Body Crisis Ours. Shire. Emily. 2016-01-28. The Daily Beast. 2018-07-26. en.