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Entertainment January 3, 2017
Lena Dunham’s cellulite graces the cover of Glamour’s February 2017 issue in a shot of the four stars of her HBO show, “Girls.”
Dunham has already taken to Instagram to explain why she displayed her body on the cover of the magazine.
READ MORE: Lena Dunham Apologizes for ‘Distasteful’ Abortion Comment
Our first cover as a fearsome foursome. Can’t wait to show the grandkids ❤❤❤ Love you @glamourmag! https://t.co/MOVll3svXP pic.twitter.com/gFvD5QFPTN
— Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) January 3, 2017
“Today this body is on the cover of a magazine that millions of women will read, without photoshop, my thigh on full imperfect display,” the 30-year-old writer wrote on a lengthy Instagram post. “Whether you agree with my politics, like my show or connect to what I do, it doesn’t matter – my body isn’t fair game. No one’s is, no matter their size, color, gender identity, and there’s a place for us all in popular culture to be recognized as beautiful.”
“Thank you to the women in Hollywood (and on Instagram!) leading the way, inspiring and normalizing the female form in EVERY form,” she added. “And thank you to @glamourmag for letting my cellulite do the damn thing on news stands everywhere today.”
But aside from body acceptance, Dunham’s cover story also promotes the importance of women acknowledging their work ethic and self-worth.
In the Glamour interview, the “Girls” writer and actress calls to attention the problem of “impostor syndrome,” or the constant dismissal of one’s accomplishments and abilities.
READ MORE: ‘Girls’ Final Season Trailer Is ‘Last Chance to Get It Almost Right’ (VIDEO)
“Making my deal with HBO as a 23-year-old woman, I felt that I had so much to prove. I felt like I had to be the person who answered emails the fastest, stayed up the latest, worked the hardest,” Dunham explained. “As much as I loved my job, I really, like, injured myself in some ways. If I had felt like, ‘You’re worthy of eight hours of sleep, not four; you’re worthy of turning your phone off on a Saturday,’ I don’t think it would have changed the outcome of the show.”
Dunham’s experience rings true for many women, especially for those who work in male-dominated environments.
Valerie Young, Ed. D., author of “The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women, told Forbes in an interview that while boys are raised to bluff and exaggerate, women are taught at an early age “stifle their voices.”
Not only that, but “a real bias against female competence persists,” Young said. “Being female means you and your work automatically stand a greater chance of being ignored, discounted, trivialized, devalued or otherwise taken less seriously than a man’s.”
But while the reason women question their competence is understandable, Lena Dunham offers valuable advice. After a six-season run, “Girls” is entering its final season and will go down as a series that has brought topics like abortion, women’s sexuality and reproductive rights to the forefront of entertainment. And as she looks back at her time on the show, Dunham argues that you should protect your mental health and feeling of self-worth at all costs.
“I could have worked with a sense of joy and excitement, rather than guilt and anxiety of being ‘found out,'” she told Glamour. “The advice I would give any woman going into a job if she has a sense of impostor syndrome would be: There will be nothing if you don’t look out for you.”
