at an issue which often comes up in the world of Entertainment, and that's

being fat or thin.

It's a big issue in the British media at the moment. One report says that weight

is the new divide between people – 'the new divide' – what separates people. So

forget social class – how rich you are, where you live: you are being judged on

how heavy you are! The report says that 8 out of 10 people judge others by

their weight. Most people think that thin people are more likely to be rich and

successful. And poor people are fat and stupid! So let's hear more of people's

views on all this and look at some of the expressions they use.

The first man will use the word 'culture'. In this context, it means the attitudes

or beliefs that are shared by people in a certain society or group. Listen to some

examples of how the word might be used in different contexts.

Voice: There's a culture of laziness in this organisation, which is very damaging.

Voice: There's a culture of secrecy within the government when it comes to security

matters.

Jackie: We'll also hear the term 'socially inept'. If you're inept, you're not good at doing

something. In this case, being 'socially inept' means you're bad at personal

relationships and don't fit into society. So listen out for those two expressions

now: 'culture' and 'socially inept'. 

Entertainment – Fat or thin? bbclearningenglish.com

Page 2 of 3

Clip

There is this culture, especially in London, it's a prime example, where being fat is seen as

being socially inept. And it's driven by your magazines…

Jackie: So this man says people are seen as socially inept if they're too fat. He says this

is 'driven' by magazines, which means magazines are encouraging this kind of

attitude. Next, he'll go on to talk about how his mother feels when she goes

shopping. What expression does he use to describe how she feels?

Clip

There is this culture, especially in London, it's a prime example, where being fat is seen as

being socially inept. And it's driven by your magazines, clothes only being produced to certain

sizes so only certain people can fit into them… and only certain people fit into what society's

built as this perfect person, this perfect look almost, yeah. I mean, my mum's the perfect

example, she wants to go into the shops, she doesn't fit into the clothes and she's made to feel

as though she's almost a second class citizen.

Jackie: Did you catch that expression? He said his mum feels almost as though she's a

second class citizen because she can't find the clothes she wants in a big enough

size. A 'second class citizen' is someone who is seen as less important and less

valuable than other people – not a very nice feeling to have! Let's hear some

more views on the issue. Does this girl think it would be good to have more fat

women pictured on the covers of magazines?

Clip

I think it does matter. I mean, I don't want to be fat. Especially in magazines and things like

that, you never see, like, a big girl and if I do see a big girl on a magazine cover I would think

'Why did they put her there?' 

Entertainment – Fat or thin? bbclearningenglish.com

Page 3 of 3

Jackie: This girl doesn't want to be fat and says she'd find it strange to put someone fat

on the front of a magazine. What do this girl and this boy think?

Clip

I think it does matter but only, like, on a superficial level. Like, when you look at someone,

that's the first thing, I suppose that you notice - what they look like. But after that other things

matter. I think it's important to be healthy. It shouldn't be about weight, it should be about

health and happiness and other issues that are so important than what you look like.

You shouldn't judge a person by his physique.

 

Jackie: Phew, so there are some people who think your weight shouldn’t be so

important. The boy said you shouldn't judge someone by their physique – you

shouldn't make decisions about what a person is like based on their body – their

physique. The girl said it only matters on a 'superficial level', it's not really

important. Listen again.

(repeat clip)

Jackie: Well, I have to say, I agree with those last views– life is too short to spend it

worrying about what people look like! Let's finish with a recap of some of the

language that came up. We talked about 'a culture of…', which means a set of

shared beliefs or attitudes about something. 'Socially inept' is an expression to

describe someone who doesn't really fit in and is bad at personal relationships.

'To be driven by something' means to be encouraged by or caused by it. 'A

second class citizen' is someone who is seen as less valuable than other people.

If something only matters on a 'superficial level', it doesn't really matter much.

'To judge' someone is to make a decision about what they are like. And your

'physique' is the size and appearance of your body. That's all for now, but keep

practising your English and finding out more about the world around you with