Narrativas sobre aparência e saúde do corpo feminino : a disputa por capitais sociais em perfis do movimento corpo livre e da cultura fitness no Instagram

Abstract

The main objective of the present study is to understand the dispute of narratives about the female body in profiles from both the Body Positive Movement and the Fitness Culture on Instagram, by comprehending how the platform structure modulates performances and positions on the female body - becoming an objective space of the dispute for narratives, and understanding how the narratives of the self are constructed under the form of health/physical appearance information in the same profiles. And ultimately, to encompass how strategies and disputes for the legitimacy of the female body are configured in those profiles, establishing the ways that self-narratives in the form of health / physical appearance information on Instagram mobilize capital and social positions in the midst of disputes over consecration and power. To this end, the present research starts from the theoretical-methodological approach considering the dramaturgical perspectives of Goffman (2014) in the collection and the first part of the analysis of the data, and then the perspectives of the Fields Theory (BOURDIEU, 1996, 2011, 2017), mainly when it comes to concepts of social capital, instances of consecration and power, as well as strategies of social distinction and construction of representations of Taste - socially manifested preferences. These two stages of the research will supply to determine the topics listed above, as the narratives of the self - which are created in female profiles on Instagram, are based on the legitimation of the female body, which makes those speeches even more interesting to observe and study, as disputes over a definition of how the body should be treated and how people should relate to it are being guided by a wide reach on Instagram and the logic of digital influencers. Two profiles were selected to be analyzed in this study, one representing each segment: Alexandra Gurgel (Body Positive) and Gabriela Pugliesi (Fitness Culture). Publications from the two profiles were collected in the 6-month time frame, as well as comments received on the same profiles. Among the results, we highlight that the clash of narratives is the place in which the dispute for the legitimacy of the performance of the body is constituted, where appearance is a consequence to health characteristics. Thus, Alexandra presents herself as a body, a profile, a narrative of resistance and clash with the naturalizations of the narratives built by the Fitness Culture on Instagram, represented in the present study by Gabriela Pugliesi. Thus, the dispute for the legitimacy of the female body is established between the positioning of the Fitness Culture on the argument that the only possibility of health is the performance of the fitness body, while the Free Body disputes the possibility of also being socially recognized as healthy and beautiful. The analysis of the comments proved to be important for the establishment of capital accumulation indicators. This accumulation is established as follows: we believe that Gabriela Pugliesi has a greater accumulation of economic and social capital and a conflicting accumulation of symbolic capital, which results from the expressive inconsistency that she presents in her narratives, being even perceived by the public that keep up with her. Alexandra Gurgel, on the other hand, seems to circulate well among other spaces that go beyond Instagram and is now recognized from the content of her profile, being invited to give speeches and interviews on television programs of great repercussion nationwide, and also perceived by the commentators on her profile, which is configured as symbolic and social capital. Economic capital, based on the perception of post-paid insertions, is found on a smaller scale, at least in comparison to the insertions on Gabriela's profile. Finally, the Body Positive, as a competing group (BOURDIEU, 2017), to the Fitness Culture, does not dispute for positioning itself as superior to Fitness Culture, but rather to be recognized and respected based on the demarcations of difference. If the "self" is composed of the relationship with the "other", there is an investment for the relationship to be of mutual recognition, from the perspective of Magdalena Piñeyro. The struggle is for the non-denial of difference, but for recognition.