Undressing Homogeneity: Prescribing Femininity and the Transformation of Self-Esteem in How to Look Good Naked

Abstract

This article deconstructs the “diversity paradox” in the series How to Look Good Naked. Although it promotes body acceptance for all women, the series relies on ideologically constructed conventions of beauty that confound its agenda. Ultimately, the series attempts to rearticulate the trope of transformation by inciting candidates to self-govern.

Keywords:

• femininity
• How to Look Good Naked
• makeover
• self-esteem
• television

Notes

1. In the fifth season, the show also featured a male candidate, but the episode is not available for viewing outside the United Kingdom.