I love her even more now? I'm not entirely sure if that's possible. But she's my hero even more than she was, clearly.

That's what I call a real woman!

Now I just feel creepy, 'cos my crush on her just got a little bigger.

She is fantastic, though, and not only as an actress.

Good for her for taking a stand, I imagine it's not that easy. She's restored her place in my good books (which had faltered a bit after that Vanity Fair cover with slimy Tom Ford).

i'm not much of a fan of her acting (i do think she's very beautiful nonetheless), but she gets a gold star for this. i'm pleased to see her sticking up for the small-boobied girls of the world.

I applaud her for taking a stand. It sucks that this kind of stuff happens pretty often (with men too), but if more people like Ms. Knightley condemn it, maybe these impossible standards can decrease their presence in all areas of our life.

Didn't you mean to say that she had the ovaries to "come out and remind us of our own wisdom."

:D

I know. I'm cheesy.

I've been a big fan of hers since seeing her in Bend It Like Beckham (strong on female roles all around). It is shameful that the industry feels that people, even as stunning as Keira, aren't good enough the way they are, and I'm glad she is putting her foot down now that she has the clout to do so without hurting her career.

This isn't the first time Keira's spoken about such a topic and I lover her for outspokenness.

If people as beautiful as Keira Knightely are being air brushed, you know something is WRONG.

But yeah, though I am aware that nothing is really as it seems and that every single lovely famous person is enhanced to crap, it's nice for one of them to actual say something about it.

It also helps reminds people that she is human. The media makes it so easy to forget...

"has the balls"
Are you serious?

"If people as beautiful as Keira Knightely are being air brushed, you know something is WRONG."

seriously.
it's an unwinnable game. no human being can ever live up to the ideal--but you sure can come close. so get out your pocketbooks, ladies, 'cuase the beauty industrial complex is here to help!

Go Keira Knightly! Thanks for the story, Courtney!

PeggyLu, you stole my cheesy line. I cringed when I read "has the balls" and figured she could have at least said "ovaries." Both lines are pretty inane, though.

Anyways, I'm not a fan of her acting but I suppose it's nice to know I can admire her for other things.

I agree let her be, but that is all I agree with. I do not think we need to make some hero out a woman who so CLEARLY has body issues.

She said in Allure Magazine:

“I haven’t got a clue about how much I weigh,” she says. “I do not own any scales.”

This fact, she suggests, seems to rankle others. “And I have noticed it creates an anger in people who are not skinny. People like to blame their insecurities on other people.”

Maybe I am too sensitive, but she can piss off. I could really care less. I mean the only real tragedy is that she got nominated for best actress over Ziyi Zhang.

Orange_Orange, I have to disagree with you. I do not think she "CLEARLY has body issues" if she doesn't own a scale. She is probably naturally thin, and it seems she's really happy with that, small boobs and all, and doesn't want to change her body. I know it's easier for a woman in our society not to want to change her body when it's thin rather than fat, but when you're in Hollywood, you do get all sorts of pressure. I remember reading a website not long ago talking about what a tragedy it was that Keira Knightley had such small boobs, because if she had larger boobs, she could be truly attractive. When millions of strangers you've never met feel entitled to talk about you like that, it can be a powerful force toward getting plastic surgery and/or Photoshopping your pictures, and the fact that Knightley hasn't done that when so many others have is admirable.

The bit about blaming insecurities on other people is certainly not the most sensitive or intelligent quote in the world, but she is coming from a perspective where people deem her natural body anorexic in national publications in order to tear her down. And though fat women should not be insecure about their bodies, many of them are, and call naturally thin people anorexic or "not real women" instead of embracing their bodies as they are.

This is all just a long way of saying that it's not solving world hunger, but it takes guts to do what Knightley's doing, and I admire her for it.

It's true that not one, single person can live up to this "perfect woman" image the media is selling to people. Good for her for speaking out about this, there's no reason for any airbrushing in her case anyway! Just let the people be the people and do what they love to do, already!

Yeah, let's all thank Keira for capitalizing off of female sexuality and nakedness (again), as though she's got some brillant feminist strategy, not just more of the same individualism that perpetuates our capitalist patriarchy. She is, after all, working the promotion circuit for this flick, which I don't see as a coincidence to this particular media attention grab. I do agree with Courtney that this sentiment is not new, and I see it as co-optation of feminist language for personal gain. On the scale of evil deeds, I don't see Keira as weighing too terribly much, but does she deserve such praise? I don't think so.

Yes, she does deserve such praise. In an industry built on conforming to an ideal, to stand up and say - hey wait, I don't fit every part of that ideal, that's OK and I don't want you to change me takes some guts. It could ruin the career of someone who was less established and cause a ripple of backlash against someone in her position. Standing up to the status quo is never easy.

Courtney -- I so saw you on GMA this morning. Whoo!

RE Keira -- Like others, I applaud her efforts. Rather than make her a saint, though, I think we need to make her a standard. Let's give her as much attention and media coverage as possible so that other actresses will catch on to the trend.

"I do not think we need to make some hero out a woman who so CLEARLY has body issues."
I agree with Lauren that her comments do not indicate having body issues. They indicate having issues with people who criticize her body, but I think that is a wholly different issue. Not owning a scale, not worrying about every pound gained or lost and focusing on things like "do these jeans still fit?" is, IMO, a plus and a healthier attitude overall. And maybe she is just pissed that she is consistently called anorexic and it is consistently alleged that her body is not hers naturally while she is at the same time being subjected to digital body mods to "help" her achieve "perfection".

"On the scale of evil deeds, I don't see Keira as weighing too terribly much, but does she deserve such praise?"
I don't see her actions as being even on a scale of evil deeds. And even if she doesn't describe herself as a feminist and even if she could in some way benefit from this action as an individual, I think we should still praise her efforts to get people to keep their hands -even digitally- off of her body. Knightley is beautiful, and skinny. And in being skinny, has very little breast to speak of. To consciously choose to highlight that, to consistently point out when her figure has been modified and protest against it- is, IMO, a praise-worthy action. It helps highlight the ridiculous paradigm of womanly beauty; it helps deflate the idea that "visible hip bone, no fat, and huge boobs" is a viable and attainable form.

Hmmm, I don't own a fucking scale, does that mean *I* CLEARLY have body issues??? The reason I don't have one is because I COULDN'T EVEN GIVE A SHIT what the number on the little display says when I step on it. BFD. I don't want to be one of those people who are OBSSESSED with a number on a piece of plastic and metal, and worse, base my sense of self-worth on what that number is versus what it's "supposed" to be.

I might even say that the people who DO own a scale, and step on it every single day and fret over that little number, are the ones with serious body issues.

glad other people are bothered by the phrase "has the balls". why is it that a woman does something powerful to stick up for herself it has to be linked with male anatomy? haven't we learned anything?

I agree with Petpluto - Keira's motives aren't really as important as the impact of her message. FeministReview complains that Keira's words are just a marketing ploy (and she may well be right), but how bad would it be if it suddenly became a hip (and commercially viable) trend for actresses to say, "I won't accept any airbrushing"? I think that would be awesome. From there, it would be only a few short steps to "I won't lose weight to get a job" to "I won't get plastic surgery to get a job" to "I won't play roles that are demeaning to women."

I absolutely fucking hate Kiera Knightley, but this is obviously commendable.

I was just quoting context, I could care less that she owns a scale. I have read other interviews where she has stated that she either has a weight problem or that she used to or that she never did. Whatever tugs the audiences’ heartstrings at that time.

Still, I think being insensitive to overweight people is not winning any points with me. Whatever.

Um, HELLO?! Do you people not remember how much weight she dropped once she started making it big? Another sad example of Gwen Stefanism: claw your way to fame as an active, asskicking, sporty, healthy, empowering female role model and wind up an emaciated skeleton teetering around on stilettos once you start getting invited to award shows.

I'm sorry, but just...no.

Good for her for speaking out against airbrushing, but let's not give Keira "Razorblade Clavicle" Knightley a medal for being a champion of healthy body image ideals. Come on now.

I'm not a fan of Keira Knightley, either as an actress--every character she plays comes off as dumb and vapid, which works in some films, but is painful to watch in others--or as a public figure--I'm still pretty outraged by her infamous Vogue photoshoot with the Masai
http://www.style.com/vogue/feature/052207/popup/slideshow1.html
So I'm not really all that won over by this statement. It just seems like too little, too late in her career as a public/media figure.

Cedar, I don't think that Keira Knightley is doing too little, too late, because Shakespeare's Sister highlighted her response to her body being digitally modified last year:
http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2007/08/why-we-love-keira.html
Seems she's staying right on message, and that this is an issue that she has discussed and talked about for quite a while now.
"Do you people not remember how much weight she dropped once she started making it big?"
No, actually, I don't. She doesn't look significantly (or any) different to me now than she did when she made Bend it Like Beckham and the first Pirates of the Caribbean. She's always been skinny, and she's never had boobs.

"Keira "Razorblade Clavicle" Knightley"

Really, TheSoyMilkConspiracy? What an awesome thing to say about a person! Would you call another thin person the same name? Disgusting.

@TheSoyMilkConspiracy

Let's change that up a bit.

"but let's not give Queen "Thunder thighs" Latifah a medal for being a champion of healthy body image ideals. Come on now."

Sounds pretty awful, doesn't it?

Has she always been thin? Absolutely. Has she always been "Ribcage xylophone" thin? Hell no.

I am another really thin person actually, and yeah, doesn't bother me when it happens to me. Sorry, ya'll.

I just did a google search for Keira Knightley, because I don't remember ever being able to see her ribcage. And I still can't, though the picture is circa 2007:
http://img2.timeinc.net/people/i/2007/startracks/070122/keira_knightley2.jpg
I can see rock hard abs though.

Well SoyMilk, I'm thin too, and your comments are really offensive. Cut it out.

She is incredible--not only for standing up for herself, but for having the strength to stand up for herself despite all of the pressure. I personally don't think I could muster up that strength in the face of the sort of criticism she has had to put up with for her body type.

I have a feeling if we were dealing with a curvier woman--what people often refer to as a "real" woman, as if women like Keira aren't real women, too--who was refusing to be airbrushed, no one would say a word against her or deny that what she was doing was any less than awesome.

I agree with Tara K.: "Rather than make her a saint, though, I think we need to make her a standard."

Like others here, I can't stand Keira Knightley -- her personality grates and I haven't been impressed with a film role of hers since 'Bend It Like Beckham' (which should have made Parminder Nagra a star instead of Ms. Knightley).

I also think it's a little hypocritical of her to be up in arms about airbrushing when she clearly has no problem with lip collagen or plastic surgery.

Having said that, however, I do wish that all actors, actresses, models, and singers would take a similar stand. Maybe if she can do it, others can too.

I think you all are missing the point here. I think Keira Knightly has a great self image. I mean she would not be so naked so much for us all. She thinks she’s a gift of absolute perfection that we all must participate in and admire. However, her opinion of less than skinny people is not very positive. I mean there are many folks who are thin who think she’s a little too thin as well or rather plenty of thin and less than thin folks who focus too much attention on a woman’s physique. So why on earth does she only call out overweight people? Why not everyone? That’s all I am saying.

"I also think it's a little hypocritical of her to be up in arms about airbrushing when she clearly has no problem with lip collagen or plastic surgery."

How is it hypocritical? Lip collagen (which the link you provided also nicely stated that Keira Knightley doesn't 'fess up to it and that the author only thinks it has been done) and/or plastic surgery is a personal decision. It wouldn't be done without her consent, her opinion, or knowledge if/when she had it done. Meanwhile, air brushing and the giving of boobs seems to consistently take her by surprise and is done without her express knowledge or consent.

I'm not a fan of plastic surgery, but I can certainly where the difference between something a person chooses to do and something done to the person. Changing her lips, getting Botox, whatever else would be her decision about what needed (or didn't) to be changed, but adding boobs is someone else dictating what is wrong with her body and how to fix it.

"I think you all are missing the point here. I think Keira Knightly has a great self image. I mean she would not be so naked so much for us all. She thinks she’s a gift of absolute perfection that we all must participate in and admire. However, her opinion of less than skinny people is not very positive."

I'm not missing the point. Frankly, I don't know much about Keira Knightley; I haven't read a whole bunch about her or interviews with her, excepting one in which she cited disliking her "wonky teeth". But I do have to say that I see nothing that shows a negative opinion of less than skinny people.

From the quote you highlighted, I see she has a negative opinion of those who criticize her own body without having any real knowledge about her or what is healthy for her. I see a woman who is expressing frustration and probably highlighted what she thinks drives people to tear into her about her body and her weight. She talks about people who seem angry with her for not owning a scale, and nothing about people who are heavier than she is who DON'T criticize her. And that is why I don't think she's calling out "overweight people" but people -of any size- who call her out for being too skinny, who call her anorexic.

Like many people have mentioned before, I'm not a huge Keira fan. However, I respect her, now more than before.

This post reminds me a lot of a video put forth by the Dove beauty campaign...check it out!

http://www.dove.us/#/features/videos/default.aspx[cp-documentid=7049560]/

Okay, this drives me crazy. Just as Hollywood can airbrush to make celebrities look more voluptuous, they also use it to tear them down. If you compare the picture petpluto posted, and this one, it's obvious that they altered her body negatively for this one.

http://www.destinationcreation.com/informatives/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/keira_knightley_cc.jpg

Ok, now that I've had lunch and I'm not (as) cranky:

I apologize if my comments offended people, but I still stand by them. I never mean to be offensive or hurtful, but the bottom line is everybody has an opinion or says something that they consider innocuous that will inevitably piss others off. It's a fact of life, and while it's obviously everybody's right to criticize or lend rebuttal comments, I'm not obligated to "knock it off" (and neither is anybody else). Isn't discourse grand?

Last time I checked, the "reverse discrimination" defense was never an excuse on this board, and I don't think that should stop now. I've been on several other weight-themed posts on Feministing, and this always comes up. Somebody says something slightly derogatory towards thin people (i.e. using the phrase "real women have curves," "ew! she looks sick!" etc.), somebody thin takes offense, and shitstorm ensues. The resulting consensus always seems to be "well, thin people have it a lot easier than heavier people, so they can take their knocks when they get 'em, especially if it's going to make those who might not fit the standard beauty ideal feel better about themselves." I've always agreed with this. As a white person, I'm not offended when people talk shit on white folks (but would be horrified to hear the same things said about people of color). As a thin woman who tends to relatively fit the "standards of beauty" mold, I don't take offense when those who are thin are criticized (especially if it's for appearing unhealthy), but would be offended if similar comments were directed towards people of size. We don't let men, white people, heteros, or any other privileged folks slide by on the "but...but...but...that's a double standard!" argument, so why start here? Sizeism is alive and well, and we all know who the victims are.

That being said, I do recognize that, as a woman, Keira's body is unnecessarily scrutinized, criticized, and commented on as a result of her gender, which is unfair, but she has also clearly, clearly dropped weight since she became famous (when she didn't need to). I'm a little baffled by people on this board insisting that it's not true. Just Google "Keira Knightley thin/skeletal/emaciated/skinny etc." and there are thousands of posts about her drop in weight. If people are going to seriously claim that Keira's current frame isn't shockingly thin or at least a tad unhealthy looking, I really don't know how to respond to that.

I'm not going to apologize for criticizing someone who is setting a poor and dangerous example for little girls the world over. She has made a concerted effort to be a level of thin that 99.9% of people would have to take very drastic and unhealthy measures to achieve, and young women are being told we should look like her. Keira is another in a long line of actresses who unnecessarily dropped weight and have created this near-epidemic of skeletal famous women that are now setting the standard for the rest of us. Is it entirely her fault? Absolutely not. It's directors and casting agents that demand actresses dip below 100 lbs. if they really want that part, it's patriarchy for so many reasons they can't be counted here, it's the eager public who gleefully roll around in vapid, fat-bashing, celeb worship, gossip mag trash like pigs in shit. But it's also the actresses who agree to this. Who put their health in danger for fame and fortune and the honor of setting the standards of beauty. Who talk about the importance of loving yourself just the way you are out of one side of their mouths while sucking down diet pills with the other. Who make millions off of an image thousands of women will starve themselves to try to achieve.

Like I said, good for her for trashing airbrushing, but she really has no legitimate basis to criticize unrealistic beauty standards. Frankly, I'm a little shocked that the controversy surrounding her weight wasn't at least mentioned in the original post. In a blog entry about Keira Knightley and body image, it warrants at least a sentence.

So yeah. If you want to take my feminist card away and give it to all those that comprise the Hollywood Eating Disorder Machine, be my guest, but I expected a lot more from Feministing. It must either be opposite day, or I'm unknowingly submitting comments to perezhilton.com

Oh, and anybody can have "rock hard abs" if they don't have an ounce of fat on their body to cover their internal organs.

i'm not sure what to make of keira knightly. i remember reading articles from some time back where she had a very different attitude. however her figure has made her famous and i believe that part of what she says comes from the realisation that the reason she's been getting high paid contracts from chanel is because she has the body of your typical european supermodel (so i'm not talking about the victoria secret models for example) and if she enlarged her chest she would lose that.

however if all this has made her comfortable with her body-well good for her regardless! :D

Why are the comments on this post so negative and combative?

Soymilk, I don't see anyone wanting to take your "feminist card" away, but I did see people expressing discomfort with your comments. I'm not sure why that warrants such outrage.

I don't think Keira Knightly is perfect, or the embodiment of the feminist ideal, whatever the hell that is, and I don't think Courtney is saying that, either. She's just giving her kudos for asking not to be digitally enhanced. Why is that so controversial on a feminist website?

I'm sorry, I'm just bummed out to see so much hostility here, and such negative comments about Knightley's body as well.

Haha, excellent rant, SoyMilk. You convinced me. :)

Keira's weight has fluctuated/dropped quite a bit since Bend it Like Beckham, but to be fair, she did train pretty hard for that role. She was pretty buff in that film. Although she is very thin, I don't know whether or not she is healthy or unhealthy - I am pretty sure only she could tell you the honest answer to that - but her shape did change after she stopped training for that movie. I also seem to recall that she has always been quite thin (in The Hole, for example). Who knows what her health is really like except her. I do think it's commendable for her to speak publicly against airbrushing. It's a step in the right direction, and I don't think she deserves to be ripped apart on a feminist website for that.

SoyMilk, when people talk trash about white people, or any other position of privilege, they do it because those privileged folk are refusing to acknowledge their privilege or abusing their privilege, not just for being white. The "razorblade clavicle" comment seems to criticize Knightley just for being thin.

The whole point of combating sizeism is that we need to stop criticizing healthy bodies for their appearance. I obviously don't know for sure whether Keira Knightley is at a healthy natural weight, but I'm that thin without exercising. I have "razorblade clavicles" even though I don't watch what I eat. For you to tell me that my body is shameful and setting a bad example for others is offensive. I fully acknowledge it is easier to be thin than fat, and I stand up for fat acceptance whenever I get the chance, but shaming me for my natural body isn't okay just because others have received more shaming for their natural bodies than I have. And as someone who has been mocked all the time since puberty for having small boobs (not that that's nearly as bad as being mocked for being fat), I think that taking a stand against Photoshopping your smaller breasts into bigger ones is a really brave thing to do.

Jenny Dread, my thoughts exactly.

SoyMilk, it's not about you being unfeminist, I don't think anyone even remotely insinuated that. It was the name calling that I found offensive. There are better ways of making a point than mockery- especially since this is a body issue thread. That's not discourse, the other things you've written are, but "Kiera 'razorblade clavical' Knightly" is worthy of PerezHilton.com.

I am also thin. (If I had to guess, I would say that MOST people who identify as feminists are probably thin and conventionally attractive, but I have no data on that.) The thing is, when thin people complain about sizeism directed at them, it often comes off as just, "Hey, don't hate me because I'm beautiful."

That said, I realize there ARE ways to "attack" thin people cruelly, just as no white person feels entirely comfortable listening to a black person rag on "whitey." Yet I didn't find SoyMilk's comments offensive. Lauren, I think SoyMilk's argument was that Kiera DOES abuse her privilege as a high-profile celebrity by making "a concerted effort to be a level of thin that 99.9% of people would have to take very drastic and unhealthy measures to achieve, and young women are being told we should look like her."

I hope this conversation happened when Kate Winslet said nearly the same things about being photoshopped smaller. We can all agree that it's good when someone with power says "no" to the machine that made it, but I see absolutely no reason to congratulate Keira Knightly for saying one thing and then practicing another. Overly skinny people happen- fat people happen- but I think it's crazy to go around thinking that the current standard of Hollywood beauty is one we should be shyly smiling at, saying "oh! Well she's suuuuuch a good actress! It's okay for her to not practice what she preaches!" And can we stop banding about the term "privilege" please? Since we're all practically anonymous, how can anyone here say who's got it better than anyone else? It's infuriating.

...But Courtney's post wasn't about Keira Knightley's weight. It was about about her speaking up regarding digital enhancement of her bust.

Oh my god, so if you like Keira Knightley as an actress you're shyly smiling at oppressive beauty standards? Please.

Kiera DOES abuse her privilege as a high-profile celebrity by making "a concerted effort to be a level of thin that 99.9% of people would have to take very drastic and unhealthy measures to achieve
----------------

Are you out of your mind? Your conclusion that she makes a "concerted effort" to be impossibly thin is based on what exactly? Is it possible that she's just being herself?

She is unusually good looking as are the most popular actresses and models - that IS the reason they are famous in the first place. Should we perhaps ask her to stop being so unusually good looking because most women cannot achieve her level of beauty?

I have been thin my entire life and made to feel as if there's something wrong with me for it. And you know what? Women aren't any less guilty of this kind of harassment than men - so as far as I'm concerned, the problem of sexism rests squarely on the shoulders of men and women like you.

If people are going to seriously claim that Keira's current frame isn't shockingly thin or at least a tad unhealthy looking, I really don't know how to respond to that.

What is with this kind of clamoring to be the arbiter of what's "healthy?"

If some commenter here tsk-tsked a curvy actress or an actress who had recently gained weight, saying they looked "a tad unhealthy," she'd never hear the end of it. So why, , do you feel license to dictate who's healthy -- and who's delusional simply by virtue of calling you presumptuous in saying so? Are you Knightley's dietician or doctor? Have I failed to notice some magazine cover paparazzi shot of Knightley keeling over on a sidewalk or gazing longingly at a companion's food in a restaurant?

It's one thing to say you think a thin person looks ugly or is setting an unhealthy example for larger women, but it's quite another to speculate on a thin woman's health simply because she's thin. That assumption that women can't be trusted properly to nourish themselves, thin or not, and that the public must look out for their weight is just another manifestation of the sexist stage on which entertainers play.

Also, way to assume how/why she lost weight. You don't know.

I think that digital and surgical enhancements are a form of dishonesty anyway, so good for her. One thing I will say though is that recently, I have learned that it doesn't matter whether a woman has big boobs or small boobs, the world (men and women) is obsessed with boobs. My post "Becky Quick is the hottest flat-chested chick of all time" has incredible page view staying power, beyond what I ever expected making that flippant statement, and now I get a fair amount of traffic by people searching for content on "flat chested". So I don't think Keira Knightley will lose any fan appeal by fighting against digital enhancement; if anything, she will gain from it by raising the all-powerful topic of breasts, large or small.

i'm seriously wondering why it's so "brave" for someone who makes her livelihood (and, as courtney noted above, it's a substantial amount) from her looks to decline photoshopping that would make her look LARGER in any sense. (because the flat-chested are so discriminated against? good lord, i wear a D-cup, and i can't find shirts that will fit without looking like i'm wearing a hefty bag.)especially when she's quite obviously dropped weight while in the public eye. (whether or not that weight loss is healthy or not is not for me to say, but we all know that being the movie and fashion industries both directly and indirectly encourage women to be thinner, thinner, thinner.)

oh, wow, i'm astounded by the bravery.

this earns a great big WHATEVER.

Well, now that baddesignhurts made such a powerful argument while also disclosing her bra size, allow me to flip-flop on this one and agree with baddesignhurts 100%, verbatim. Big WHATEVER, Keira Knightley!

Petpluto:
“She talks about people who seem angry with her for not owning a scale, and nothing about people who are heavier than she is who DON'T criticize her. And that is why I don't think she's calling out "overweight people" but people -of any size- who call her out for being too skinny, who call her anorexic.”

I disagree since she said:

“And I have noticed it creates an anger in people who are not skinny. People like to blame their insecurities on other people.”

See people who ARE NOT skinny are angered by her thinness. So I do not know how you get people of any size that is NOT what she said.

Look, I agree she is unfairly scrutinized but she also participates in unfairly scrutinizing folks. She is a hypocrite at best.

"especially when she's quite obviously dropped weight while in the public eye"

Could you please cite examples instead of just saying that she has? Because I've spent a fair amount of time today flipping through photos of her on Google images from 2003 when Bend it Like Beckham came out through 2008 and I have to say that I do not see an obvious drop in weight. What I do see is an extremely skinny young woman who has a right to dictate how her body is portrayed in the media. She's an A-cup, and I frankly think it is fabulous that she isn't trying to be a D-cup and is allowing for the idea that just because she's skinny and an A-cup doesn't mean she is in any way less sexy or desirable or beautiful or marketable or TALENTED than someone who is a C-cup or a D-cup.

"because the flat-chested are so discriminated against?"
Yes, they are. Forget women complaining about how their boobs are too small, look at the article linked to Huffington Post and the comments attached through the Real Women Have Curves: Keira Knightley Edition on this website. Users on that site were complaining that Keira Knightley isn't attractive or feminine (I think one comment described her as a "12 year old boy") because she doesn't have a huge chest, and that is discrimination.

"See people who ARE NOT skinny are angered by her thinness. So I do not know how you get people of any size that is NOT what she said."

I'm not skinny. I'm not someone who is discriminated against because of my weight. But I'm not skinny. I'm not saying this to give my argument any more credence or to convince anyone of anything else, but because there is a wide range of people from "Keira Knightley skinny" to "petpluto size" to "overweight" to "obese". And because of that, I stand by what I typed.

But let me look at it again:
"And I have noticed it creates an anger in people who are not skinny. People like to blame their insecurities on other people.”

What I get from this is: Keira Knightley is skinny, and purportedly doesn't care about her exact weight. She is frequently criticized for her body size, something that she ostensibly cannot help. She has done nothing to the people who criticize her, but she is still called "anorexic", "unhealthy", "a bad role model for young women", etc. And since she has done nothing except be skinny to gain that ire, she apparently assumed it was the other person's body size that correlated to their anger over HER body size.

Considering the comment and the fact that she was probably speaking off the fly, I conclude that she isn't a hypocrite so much as someone who is tired of being criticized about her size, and is making an assumption (and perhaps an erroneous one) about the people who are in fact seemingly attacking her. It doesn't seem to me as if she is speaking universally, but about a specific portion of the general population, those being the people who are writing/saying untrue and hurtful things about her own appearance. Maybe I'm wrong and she hates anyone larger than a size 1; but I can't conclude that from this quote and I very much like giving people the benefit of a doubt.

cnbc sucks, sorry for not taking this tempest-in-a-teapot as seriously as you would like. i guess when i see an overpaid, marginally talented actress stirring up publicity for herself by repeatedly calling attention to her body image, which she uses to make a helluva lotta money, by discussing it in a prominent public forum, the bratty cynic in me has a hard time coming up with anything better than "whatever". but here goes: wow, a woman who's made more money in a day than i will in my lifetime by taking most of her clothes off in an ad for overpriced stink water is SO BRAVE for standing up to the big bad evil patriarchy. wow, now she might not get that million-dollar modeling contract!

and pet pluto, from watching "bend it like beckham", which was when i first became aware of her, to more recent photos of her, like the one above, she looks dramatically thinner to me. *shrug* (of course, i must remember that all these photos most likely have been digitally altered, so you're right, i don't know if she's actually dropped pounds, or done yoga, or what-have-you, or if she's been photoshopped. that is a possible my bad.)

i'm still not seeing, though, how flat-chested women are discriminated against. (saying someone isn't attractive because of one's figure isn't discrimination: no one is taking away her rights by saying she looks like a "12-year-old-boy". they're just being ridiculous.) and both large- and flat-chested women complain about their breasts. i'm still not seeing how anyone's rights are diminished by their breast size, and i really don't understand why some commenters are applauding keira for her bravery.

Hey baddesignhurts, sorry for being excessively flippant which I think confused you, maybe even myself. If I had my way, every thread on Feministing and every progressive blog on the Internet would be about how we beat John McCain and get 60 Democrats in the Senate. Keira Knightley's "stand" is a non-event in my mind, and as I said in my first comment, men don't really care if a woman is large-breasted or small-breasted, as long as she has breasts. Most of my friends have always preferred small breasts. I have much of my traffic searching for content on Becky Quick, a flat-chested woman. Keira Knightley's stance against digital big breasts is a yawner since I am sure she has plenty of fans who are breast-obsessed regardless of breast size.

Then, I confused things by attempting to make fun of my own breast obsession in suggesting I would flip-flop to your view just because you said you were a 36D.

cnbc sucks, hey, no sweat, s'all good. :)

I agree this is hardly hero stuff. If she had a million plastic surgeries it wouldn't make me respect her less. This doesn't make me respect her more although I love the Closer.

I understand, baddesignhurts.

But I also think it would be beneficial to read this:
http://community.feministing.com/2008/07/real-women-have-curves-keira-k.html

One comment in particular by Habladora caught my eye as being extremely eloquent:
"These commenters aren't just putting one woman down, they are demeaning all women. Look, kids, lots of body types are beautiful. There are people who stand to profit from convincing everyone that just one type of (fictional) woman is beautiful, and then trying to shame us all so that we'll buy buy buy in vain efforts to try to look like a digitally altered picture of Keira Knightley."

That in a nutshell is why I applaud Keira Knightley for refusing to have her body digitally modified. It isn't just because it is good for her to be the only agent deciding if her breasts become larger or smaller, but that what the images of Keira Knightley with a C-cup or larger depict is a fantasy woman no "real" woman can attain, not even Keira Knightley. She's essentially saying, "Take me as I am, because I'm beautiful with small breasts". And she is. She has the right to say so, and women (and men) have the right to feel like having people standing up and essentially say, "I'm fine the way I am" is a victory.

Baddesignhurts, women with small breasts are discriminated against socially. It's certainly not as bad as it is for fat women, but I have definitely been made fun of my entire life for being so flat. When I was a teenager, girlfriends used to slap my chest and be like, "You don't have any boobs! Does that even hurt for you?" Men have told me multiple times that I or others like me look like 12-year-old boys. Much like the media sends the message that fat bodies are unacceptable, it also sends the message that small breasts are unacceptable, and if you have them, you should get surgery to fix that. I'm sure I haven't been as ashamed of my breasts as many fat women have been of their bodies, but for years and years I felt embarrassed to go out in public, and I don't think I conditioned myself to think that. And if we're talking about not being able to buy clothing, I can barely fit into anything. I have only three bras, and they're all preteen bras from Limited Too, because I am way less than an A-cup. It is not like Tienanmen Square or anything, but it really does take bravery to stand up to a lifetime of shaming like that.

lauren, yanno, i can buy your argument, because i can indeed imagine that for someone like most of us here, who don't make money from our body image, being ridiculed for how we look and telling those that would ridicule us to FUCK OFF does indeed take bravery. (let me assure y'all, from someone who wore a bigger bra than her mom by age 12, us big-breasted girls get crap, too. and the surgery for us can diminish the capacity for future breastfeeding, so i decided that's not an option for me.)

my complaint is just that some people are acting like keira knightley is brave and doing women everywhere a favor, when i think she's once again making her body image an issue in the media while doing publicity for a movie and profiting off her looks. once the profit motive enters the discussion, i become incredibly wary.

For whatever reason, I seem to always get involved in the "breast" threads on Feministing.

@ Lauren: I can understand your point of view, but by the same token, I have seen firsthand busty women get a lot of hassle because of their large breasts. They get creeps like me creeping them out stealing quick glances at their large breasts, sending their internal radar scanners (which are more powerful than what the British had during World War II) going into uncomfortable frenzy. They can feel the creepiness, it's amazing. And we creeps can't help it to save our lives. So my point is that women with large breasts don't have a picnic either.

Cry me a river, Anathoniel. I'm soooo sorry you've been made to feel bad about being thin. What you're complaining about is the equivalent of "white guilt." You feel bad that you have accrued an assortment of benefits for being thin. Try putting on 50 pounds and then let's talk about the way you've been treated for being thin.

That was out of line, poetry lover. You don't know anything about Anathoniel or what his/her life is like. It is entirely possible that he/she is one of those skinny people who have spent their whole life trying to gain a few pounds and endure endless speculation on his/her health. If Anathoniel is a man, which is entirely possible, then the odds of him receiving a lifetime of bullshit and humiliation for being "too skinny" is greatly increased.

How can you expect empathy for yourself if you cannot have it for others?

ok sorry but i feel like people are way overreacting to this post.

i don't think anyone is holding up keira as a feminist icon and yeah, publicity is good when you are a celebrity, but i'm sure she could just as easily have gotten headlines by saying something ELSE. is she changing the world, erradicating unattainable beauty ideals? of course not, but as someone said earlier, maybe if more actresses without as much influence as keira also object to being digially modified in some ways, we'll make some progress. i also think that what celebrities have to say about these issues may not matter much to most of us, but it can have an impact on very young people, particularly young women. if reading about this makes some teenaged girl somewhere less ashamed of her body because she's not a 34C, it's a plus in my book. i lived through years of dissatisfaction with my chest. it's not the worst thing in the world, but it sucks and i wouldn't wish that feeling of inadequacy on yet another generation of women, whether it's about their breasts or their thighs or their noses or whatever.

Wow. New to this site, but this post/commenting frenzy made me join.

I'm not going to deny, make light of, or in any way take away from the crap women who don't fit societies "standards for beauty" have to put up with. It's there, it's real, and I see it every day.

But. As one of those naturally thin/skinny people who can't gain weight no matter how much she would like to... While this society is built for people like me (and I'll freely admit that it is) and thus life is easier for me in so many ways, it also bites.

Try being 15 and being told by your coach, in front of your teammates, that because you don't want to eat a sandwich between games, you must be anorexic and if you didn't eat, you won’t play.

Try being that one skinny chic who doesn't dress like a slut (retail stores selections are based on how much skin you can legally show) and can't find a shirt that isn't meant to blow up breast size, pants/shorts that don't ride up (walking orgasm anyone?), etc.

And though these people may think they are giving us a compliment, saying, "wow! You're so skinny!" and "you're so lucky, I wish I were skinny like you!" and "how do you stay so little? Do you eat? I never see you eat..." really it just pisses us off, and makes us want to buy baggy clothing and hide.

Life sucks if you're not average (whatever that is in this society). I'm not saying my life as a skinny person is harder than that of someone/anyone bigger than me (doesn't take much to be), but it ain't no walk in the park either.

As for Knightly: Eh. Part of me sides with her b/c she's naturally skinny (I'm assuming, I don't try to live the lives of celebrities). So what if what she said was aimed at getting her some attention. Does that somehow invalidate the rightness of the comment? That digitally ENhancing/DEhancing a person's body is wrong? Would "we" be as riled up if Queen Latifa said, "stop making me look thinner?"

Sorry for the length of the comment. I usually try not to write more than the actual post...

Well, if people are going to deny seeing Keira Knightley's ribcage when it is not visible at other times (I refer to in the upper chest), or her neck ever becoming thinner with the muscles and tendons standing out, or Keira Knightley's own speculation about her weight while filming Dead Men's Chest, then they won't believe anything about her weight fluctuating.

The statement she made here promotes positive body image. That's good. But before one believes she has a positive body image based on this one statement (and the claim she does not own a scale), have they heard/read her other comments regarding her body image? Yes, she vehemently denies any eating disorders, supposedly even sues over media speculation, but this, for example, stands out:

"Weight is a big issue in Hollywood because I'm twice the size - height and everything else - of most of the girls who are going in to see the director for a part.

"When you realise that I am, at my size, one of the largest actresses there, you start to think, 'I don't think it'd be healthy for me to stay here much longer.'"

I have seen many young women with figures like Keira Knightley, mostly in Japan. (And among elderly men and women, wrist and forearm bones, shoulders, vertebrae, and ribs in the upper chest also commonly stand out among these people with the longest life expectancies in the world.) But when according to one physician's survey of thousands high school girls in the Tokyo area, he found that e.g., a full 50% of THIN (not average - THIN - thin by Japanese standards) girls thought they were overweight, that was taken to indicate a serious problem with Japanese women's body image.

Also, from a variety of sources:

Keira Knightley wishes she had big boobs. The stunning actress admits she would love to have huge breasts instead of her manly "pecs". She confessed to More magazine: "I'd love to have breasts, but I don't - I have pecs."

Last year, Keira revealed she is jealous of other women's legs. The sexy star said she becomes a green eyed monster when she spots someone with long, lean pins because she hates her own.

She said: "I hate my body. I like so many other people's bodies. I like legs - a good pair of legs on someone else always makes me jealous!" The 20-year-old also revealed she will have plastic surgery when she is 25 - to stay looking youthful.

She added: "I know my looks won't last forever. In five years time I will probably be having Botox, face-lifts, nose jobs and false hair!"

[end quote]

People say Keira Knightley promotes a healthy body image. Well, obviously her message is being taken the wrong way:

http://www.keiraknightley.com/keira_articles/shockinglythin2.php

When she is the idol and ideal of countless girls on anorexia and bulimia forums, and even recovering anorexics see her as too thin, well, maybe she does LOOK too thin. Again, thin even by our society's unrealistic standards which usually judge women as too big or heavy.

"Keira Knightley wishes she had big boobs. The stunning actress admits she would love to have huge breasts instead of her manly "pecs". She confessed to More magazine: "I'd love to have breasts, but I don't - I have pecs.""

I'm curious about this comment's inclusion, mostly because even if Keira Knightley did at some point want larger boobs but now has decided that she is comfortable with her body and is making an effort to "normalize" smaller boobs in the eyes of the general public, then I would call this a positive change in attitude. Or even if she still wishes she had larger breasts but also wants her body to be represented as it is, then it is still, for my money, a positive message.

"People say Keira Knightley promotes a healthy body image. Well, obviously her message is being taken the wrong way"

Here's the thing: I'm coming at this from the perspective that Keira Knightley may very well just be that thin. In many of the pictures I've seen her in spanning her career, she looks thinner than most people could ever achieve. But if that is indeed her natural body shape -and people like that do exist, I was friends with one of 'em in high school (and she constantly got shit for it)- then should she be forced to try and change that shape because the general public thinks she looks "too thin" and anorexics idolize her? I don't think so.

I am not making any claims about Keira Knightley's physical health or how GOOD or BAD she looks. I used to be a 120 lb., 8.6% bodyfat adult myself (when I exercised), though I felt bad about it (I wanted to look like a boxer, not a marathoner). Merely pointing out why many people, including recovering anorexics may believe she LOOKS thin or too thin, or believe her weight does fluctuate.

Well, if her 2008 statement against images of her breasts being enhanced without her consent (as in the US posters of King Arthur)

http://defamer.com/topic/keira-knightley-bazoomed-for-king-arthur-promotion-017426.php

represents a shift away from self-deprecating comments as recent as last year about her breasts, legs, butt, face, etc., then yes, it is a healthier image of herself. It's too bad a lot of young women who consider her an ideal (as on "hundreds" of forums where "tips" on anorexia and bulimia are shared) don't feel the same about themselves.

I'm curious to know where those quotes of her saying that she thought she was fat came from. The sheer ridiculousness of it smells of The Onion to me. I googled it and can't seem to find any, er credible, citations of it. No dates mentioned or who conducted the interview. However, I did just skim over it, so maybe I missed it. The point is that no article popped out as "Bobo Johnson of E! News interviews Kiera Knightly about her weight and body image."

Also, I personally loved her in Pride and Prejudice, and I've always admired the fact that she hasn't had any sort of boob enhancement. I am a 36 F and I know first hand how all clothing lines and bra stores assume that everyone is a C cup. It's fucking frustrating for me, and I can only imagine how it is on the other side of the spectrum.

"I'm curious to know where those quotes of her saying that she thought she was fat came from."

Such scrutiny is only given views one does not agree with, I have noticed. Gossip magazine or soundbite quotes, or fake BMW ads one wishes to bash on, are accepted at face value.

I consider it telling that some demand proof Keira Knightley's weight has fluctuated or dropped, which conveniently, can only be confirmed by someone who claims not to own a scale or be concerned by their weight. Actual anorexics and former anorexics on "hundreds" of forums about or promoting eating disorder, monitoring Keira Knightley's "progress" or being concerned for her health over time, should mean something.

"The sheer ridiculousness of it smells of The Onion to me."

Many things featured in OPs sound like The Onion. But if McCain is alleged to say something stupid, people don't ask for proof.

Or it represents the view of someone with issues with their body image. I see no reason why someone 22 at the time, may not be over such issues.

Sorry. Recovering from anorexia.

"Merely pointing out why many people, including recovering anorexics may believe she LOOKS thin or too thin, or believe her weight does fluctuate."

But to what point? What does it prove that other people, people who do not personally have contact with her, think she is "too" thin or "looks" too thin?

"Well, if her 2008 statement against images of her breasts being enhanced without her consent (as in the US posters of King Arthur)

http://defamer.com/topic/keira-knightley-bazoomed-for-king-arthur-promotion-017426.php

represents a shift away from self-deprecating comments as recent as last year about her breasts, legs, butt, face, etc., then yes, it is a healthier image of herself."

What if she doesn't have a "healthier" image of herself? In an interview quoted on FOX, she says, "I would love to have t--s! I would love to have Monica Bellucci's figure. But I'm never going to get it. I'm naturally who I am. Surgery is far too frightening. I couldn't."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,393362,00.html

I don't think that her possible insecurities should have much effect on how we view her refusal to allow her breasts to be digitally enhanced; if she has internalized some of the media's message of what makes a "real" woman but is continuing to battle for her body being accepted and respected as it is -and thus possibly working to limit other girls' belief that you "have" to have breasts or "have" to be a size zero or "have" to conform in every way to beauty standards, or else- then I still see this as a positive action. Perhaps an even more positive action.

"Actual anorexics and former anorexics on "hundreds" of forums about or promoting eating disorder, monitoring Keira Knightley's "progress" or being concerned for her health over time, should mean something."

I'm concerned as to why it should mean something, and who it means something for.

"What if she doesn't have a 'healthier' image of herself?"

Which is the question I am asking. But if she does, that's nice, and it's too bad the same is not true for millions of other people.

"I'm