This week we were given two stories to read by Carmen Maria Machado. I have chosen to write about the story “Real Women Have Bodies”. I feel like this story can have multiple messages and meanings, but this story for me represents how women’s bodies are viewed in modern society today. We are often judged, prodded, and harassed over the image of our bodies which is something that we cannot control. We are also judged, prodded and harassed for changing things on our bodies that we may not like ourselves. This story makes me think of how things have developed during the age of social media. Men in particular trying to decide what is real on a woman and only valuing a woman based on what she has on her body. There were some lines on page 129 that really stood out for me in regards to this.
“All I’m saying is,” says Chris, “if I want to fuck mist, I’ll just wait for a foggy night and pull my dick out.” I pinch the muscle between my shoulder and neck. “Apparently some guys like that.” “Who? No one I know,” Chris says. He reaches out and presses his thumb into my collarbone, quickly. “You’re like stone.” “Thanks?” I knock his hand away. “I mean, you’re solid.” “Okay.” “Those other girls—“ Chris begins.”
Women have started to disappear and the reasoning is unknown. They start to fade and become unreal, tied to objects in the world. I did not quite understand why the women started to disappear. Was it because they felt unworthy, not beautiful, or was it just some fantastic force with no explanation? Eventually would all women disappear? This too can have multiple meanings for the interpretation of the disappearances and who they are happening to.
The end of the story also holds meaning to me. Even though the narrator’s lover was disappearing herself, that love never changed. She still loved her body endlessly and remained loyal to her. The narrator eventually breaks at the end of the story and tries to release all the unseen women from the dresses in the shop. The narrator is someone who has compassion for these women and since her lover has turned into one, I think it breaks her and pushes her to the brink. It makes me wonder how things will progress and how the author could have continued the story. What does this story really represent and what does this mean for the women in this story?