BODY SHAMING AND ITS EFFECT IN FILM TALL GIRL (A SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS)

Abstract

Body shaming is an act of harassment that often occurs but many people are not aware of. In society, there are beauty standards that must be fulfilled by everyone, and if not, then body shaming will occur. There are many media that we can use to find out about body shaming such as newspapers, magazines, tabloids, film, radio, and others. In this research, the researcher use film as a medium in researching the actions of body shaming and the film is Tall Girl by Nzingha Stewart. This research aimed to identify the sign of body shaming and its effect towards the main character. The researcher used descriptive qualitative as the research method and use the theory of Roland Barthes. Roland Barthes developed the idea of two stages of signification that is denotation and connotation. Denotation is the first level of objective meaning that can be given to symbols, namely by linking directly between the symbol and the reality. Then the connotative meanings are the meanings that can be given to symbols by referring to cultural values and based on feelings and emotions. As a result of the research, the researcher found that in the film there are signs of body shaming in connotative and denotative forms and there are also many effects on the main character such as a crisis of confidence, insecurity, feelings of always being the object of bullying, and feelings of want to change the things that should have been destined to be owned.