Nonfiction

My Body

My Body

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  • Create Date：2021-11-09 10:50:57
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
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  • Author：Emily Ratajkowski
  • ISBN：1250817862
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Summary

"My Body offers a lucid examination of the mirrors in which its author has seen herself， and her indoctrination into the cult of beauty as defined by powerful men。 In its more transcendent passages 。 。 。 the author steps beyond the reach of any 'Pygmalion' and becomes a more dangerous kind of beautiful。 She becomes a kind of god in her own right: an artist。"
—Melissa Febos， The New York Times Book Review

A "MOST ANTICIPATED" AND "BEST OF FALL 2021" BOOK FOR * VOGUE * TIME * ESQUIRE * PEOPLE * USA TODAY * CHICAGO TRIBUNE * LOS ANGELES TIMES * SHONDALAND * ALMA * THRILLEST * NYLON * FORTUNE

A deeply honest investigation of what it means to be a woman and a commodity from Emily Ratajkowski， the archetypal， multi-hyphenate celebrity of our time

Emily Ratajkowski is an acclaimed model and actress， an engaged political progressive， a formidable entrepreneur， a global social media phenomenon， and now， a writer。 Rocketing to world fame at age twenty-one， Ratajkowski sparked both praise and furor with the provocative display of her body as an unapologetic statement of feminist empowerment。 The subsequent evolution in her thinking about our culture’s commodification of women is the subject of this book。

My Body is a profoundly personal exploration of feminism， sexuality， and power， of men's treatment of women and women's rationalizations for accepting that treatment。 These essays chronicle moments from Ratajkowski’s life while investigating the culture’s fetishization of girls and female beauty， its obsession with and contempt for women’s sexuality， the perverse dynamics of the fashion and film industries， and the gray area between consent and abuse。

Nuanced， fierce， and incisive， My Body marks the debut of a writer brimming with courage and intelligence。

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Reviews

Compu ，

SOY POBRE， ¿ALGUIEN ME LO PASA EN PDF？ :V

Anna ，

This is a thoughtful memoir from someone with a singular vantage point。 Ratajkowski explores the conflict between female empowerment， sexualization， and empowerment-through-sexualization from the unique perspective of someone who has achieved enormous success building a career upon her appearance。 As she reflects on the tradeoffs of her path， she interrogates the morality and desirability of the extreme wealth she comes into contact with， depicting the lifestyles of the ultra rich as being depre This is a thoughtful memoir from someone with a singular vantage point。 Ratajkowski explores the conflict between female empowerment， sexualization， and empowerment-through-sexualization from the unique perspective of someone who has achieved enormous success building a career upon her appearance。 As she reflects on the tradeoffs of her path， she interrogates the morality and desirability of the extreme wealth she comes into contact with， depicting the lifestyles of the ultra rich as being depressing and pathetic as often as they are glamorous。My only quibbles were that she sometimes overly universal claims and spelled out her conclusions when showing the conflict alone might have been more powerful， but overall this was not frequent or distracting。 Secondly， and this isn’t necessarily a negative， but it seems that she’s still conflicted between looking good and feeling comfortable。 I’d be interested in how her perspective changes over the next thirty years。As a celebrity memoir， an easy five stars。 As literature I’d say maybe four， but giving it five because of all the nonsensically angry haters :-） 。。。more

Patricia ，

An attempt was made

Yassmin Abdel-Magied ，

Emily writes cleanly， and knows how to tell a story。 This is not a book about feminism per se tho， as advertised。 It is rather a book by a woman figuring out her view of the world and the many contradictions she inhabits and profits from。This is also a book where the author constantly universalises her experience， demonstrating the limits of her analysis。 ‘Model or influencer or actor or not， all women know what it’s like to use their sexuality for security in some capacity， I thought’， she says Emily writes cleanly， and knows how to tell a story。 This is not a book about feminism per se tho， as advertised。 It is rather a book by a woman figuring out her view of the world and the many contradictions she inhabits and profits from。This is also a book where the author constantly universalises her experience， demonstrating the limits of her analysis。 ‘Model or influencer or actor or not， all women know what it’s like to use their sexuality for security in some capacity， I thought’， she says at one point， but is that true？ Many statements like this made， assertions that distract， and they are somewhat challenged， but those threads， which I find the most interesting， are rarely brought to satisfying conclusion。 Emily is in a ‘position to know’ and is working to convert that into wisdom。 She asks many questions and offers few answers - or changes in her behaviour。 Perhaps the questions she ask will be useful thought provocations for her audience， but this unfortunately fell short of providing any new insight for me。 。。。more

Mihaela ，

What on earth did I just read？ A book long spit session on an industry that has put her in the position to sell this book and on anyone who does not find themselves aligned with Ratajkowski's world views。 I have never read anything more self-serving and shallow in my life。 My favourite part was when she quiet literally wrote that she didn't speak about RT's sexually inappropriate behaviour at the time it happened because it would have sabotaged her rise to fame。 Fame based on RT's horrendously m What on earth did I just read？ A book long spit session on an industry that has put her in the position to sell this book and on anyone who does not find themselves aligned with Ratajkowski's world views。 I have never read anything more self-serving and shallow in my life。 My favourite part was when she quiet literally wrote that she didn't speak about RT's sexually inappropriate behaviour at the time it happened because it would have sabotaged her rise to fame。 Fame based on RT's horrendously misogynistic and grotesque song/music video。 I could rant on forever about this 'book'。 。。。more

Francesco ，

«Se sei una celebrità e vuoi scrivere un libro， molte porte si spalancheranno， ma non nel modo giusto»。 Firmato Emily Ratajkowski， supermodella 30enne， attrice e influencer su Instagram con ben 28，5 milioni di followers。 Emily non si nasconde mai e sfogliando il suo profilo pubblico， le pose ammiccanti non mancano e le curve sono sempre in bella vista， fra nudi integrali e maxi-scollature。 È il suo lavoro e non ha intenzione di smettere: «voglio continuare a fare soldi»， ha detto al New York Tim «Se sei una celebrità e vuoi scrivere un libro， molte porte si spalancheranno， ma non nel modo giusto»。 Firmato Emily Ratajkowski， supermodella 30enne， attrice e influencer su Instagram con ben 28，5 milioni di followers。 Emily non si nasconde mai e sfogliando il suo profilo pubblico， le pose ammiccanti non mancano e le curve sono sempre in bella vista， fra nudi integrali e maxi-scollature。 È il suo lavoro e non ha intenzione di smettere: «voglio continuare a fare soldi»， ha detto al New York Times。 Mamma da otto mesi di Sylvester Apollo – il marito è il produttore Sebastian Bear-McClard – di recente è diventata anche imprenditrice， fondando l’azienda di costumi da bagno Inamorata e la prima indossatrice è stata proprio lei， rilanciando una femminilità rovente， esplosiva。 Popolare come non mai， condivide con i lettori una semplice verità: «ho imparato che la mia immagine， il mio riflesso， non mi appartengono» ma prima che ci sfugga di mano， «la narrazione del proprio corpo si può controllare»。 Un concetto centrale in My Body， il suo debutto editoriale con una raccolta di saggi， in uscita mondiale il 9 novembre （in Italia lo pubblicherà Piemme， Sul mio corpo）。Il corpo come un tempio per un’autobiografia sincera sul ruolo delle donne nella società patriarcale， partendo proprio da alcune esperienze dirette che l’hanno «delusa， offesa e umiliata»， rilanciando il dibattito sul neo-femminismo e il potere tossico degli uomini， in quella zona grigia in cui il consenso può sconfinare nell’abuso。 Un esempio？ La celebrità è arrivata nel 2013， ballando seminuda nel video Blurred Lines con Robin Thicke e Pharrell （oltre 767milioni di visualizzazioni）。 A quel tempo era una disinibita 21enne ma nove anni dopo， ammette: «Sia che indossi un burqa o un bikini， stiamo operando nei confini molto specifici di un mondo cis-etero， patriarcale e capitalistico»。 Attenzione， Ratajkowski non getta la croce sui maschi e certo， qualcuno ne resterà deluso: «My Body non è solo un altro libro sul #Metoo。 È un libro sul capitalismo。 Avevo solo una risorsa da far fruttare （il corpo） e penso che la maggior parte delle donne faccia lo stesso。 Magari succede con il matrimonio»。 E dimostrando carattere， nel saggio Bc Hello Halle Berry racconta di essere stata pagata per pubblicare uno scatto del proprio sedere mentre era in vacanza alle Maldive: «Voglio essere libera di far trambusto su Instagram vendendo bikini e qualsiasi altra cosa ed essere comunque rispettata»。 In questi saggi la modella inglese dimostra anche l’intelligenza di saper cavalcare il fenomeno del body-positive， come accaduto nei numerosi selfie in cui si mostrava nuda e incinta。 Archiviato il ruolo della bellona in Gone girl – al fianco di Ben Affleck e diretta da David Fincher – recentemente ha messo all’asta da Christie’s， l’NFT （ovvero metadati associato al file immagine， consentendone l'acquisto o la vendita del file come un pezzo fisico di arte） “Buying Myself Back: A Model for Redistribution”， prendendosi una grande rivincita。 Nel 2014， una sua foto senza veli faceva parte della mostra “New Portraits” di Richard Prince alla Galleria Gagosian su Madison Avenue。 L’artista aveva preso una immagine dal profilo @emrata su Instagram e l’aveva stampata su tela， vendendola al prezzo di 90mila dollari， senza alcuna autorizzazione。 A quel punto Ratajkowski ha chiesto a Prince di realizzare un secondo NFT e successivamente， si è fatta fotografare nel proprio appartamento a New York， in posa davanti alla tela: «In tal modo – scrive nel saggio Buying Myself Back – mi sono riappropriata della narrazione della mia immagine»。 Si tratta di una questione di «giustizia morale»， affermando al New York Times «che i modelli sono pronti a far rete perché non solo la loro immagine， ma i loro corpi vengono usati in modo improprio e a scopo di lucro， in modi a quali non hanno acconsentito»。 Proprio questo discorso sulla consapevolezza e la percezione del se， è uno dei nuclei centrali della raccolta di versi My Body: «ogni donna che conosco – non importa che aspetto abbia， o se abbia modificato chirurgicamente la propria immagine o meno – sa come ci si sente a esser guardata， rifiutata e cosa significa essere squadrata solo per il proprio aspetto»。 Insomma， My Body non è il classico libro dei pensierini in libertà della influencer del momento， né un j’accuse contro la virilità tossica。 Invece， lei spiazza tutti: «non sto cercando di cancellare gli uomini del mio passato。 Voglio sfidare le aspettative dei lettori， esponendo le mie convinzioni sulla vita， l’identità e le mie idee politiche»。 Emily ha ragione， se non ora， quando？ 。。。more

Ben Tibbals ，

I won this on a Goodreads giveaway。 I didn't know what to expect， but I didn't think these essays would be so moving。 One of the repeated themes in this book is all the times she has been dismissed as a beautiful model with little else to offer， and I have to begrudgingly admit that I approached the book with a similar attitude， but I was very wrong。 She is really an exceptional writer， and I hope people pick this up。 I won this on a Goodreads giveaway。 I didn't know what to expect， but I didn't think these essays would be so moving。 One of the repeated themes in this book is all the times she has been dismissed as a beautiful model with little else to offer， and I have to begrudgingly admit that I approached the book with a similar attitude， but I was very wrong。 She is really an exceptional writer， and I hope people pick this up。 。。。more

Isabella ，

I flewww through these essays。 She really is a shrewd writer and thinker。 Maybe from another person parts of this book could have seemed navel-gazing but for someone whose navel is gazed at by millions it feels fair and very interesting to spend so many pages reflecting on appearance-related issues。 And honestly I appreciate that she can write about complicated feelings and insecurities without pretending that she doesn’t look the way she does （or pretending she doesn’t see what everyone else se I flewww through these essays。 She really is a shrewd writer and thinker。 Maybe from another person parts of this book could have seemed navel-gazing but for someone whose navel is gazed at by millions it feels fair and very interesting to spend so many pages reflecting on appearance-related issues。 And honestly I appreciate that she can write about complicated feelings and insecurities without pretending that she doesn’t look the way she does （or pretending she doesn’t see what everyone else sees）。 She knows she’s stunning AND she likes it AND she uses it AND she feels weird about it sometimes and wonders what it means to use it。 And sometimes she wants to be looked at and sometimes she wants to be invisible like we all do。 We also have the EXACT SAME recurring dreams which was kind of freaky and validating （？） to read。 I will definitely read her future books。 I hope she writes another book on bodies and beauty in 20-30 years。 I’ll be so curious to hear her reflections on later stages of womanhood， partly so she can help illuminate what I might also be thinking。 （I won a galley in a goodreads giveaway which is why this is longer than a sentence。 My first win！） 。。。more

Bridget ，

Another useless read written by another celebrity who is so out of touch with the outside world that they think their insight is actually important enough to share with others。 Emily grew up and will always be wealthy， and therefore lacks the perspective to realize she will only gain sympathy from those who are wealthy as well。 Don’t bother reading this book unless you are looking to experience a lengthy pity party by yet another spoiled brat。

Maude ，

So basically we have a women who’s bashing a industry that made her famous and is still a part of it。 Saying she’s been sexualized by men but keep posing naked photos on IG every week for likes and male attention。 Saying she was so uncomfortable on set being naked for photo shoot and video but still did it for the paycheck？ Am I supposed to have empathy for her？ She literally said she didn’t speaks against Robin Thicke before because she wouldn’t been famous i mean… hello？！

Elizabeth ，

4。5 stars

Lisa Watson ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Heartbreaking and fantastic to read。 Emily gives a searing look into the industry and its ever-changing relationship to her body。 As another femme-bodied person， I could relate to parts of this book in ways I'd rather not recall， but that sense of connection is still validating。 In her final chapter， I felt hope and joy at hearing her describe childbirth and her body performing exactly as it was built to do。 It was a beautiful ending to her book， the start of her life as a mother。 Heartbreaking and fantastic to read。 Emily gives a searing look into the industry and its ever-changing relationship to her body。 As another femme-bodied person， I could relate to parts of this book in ways I'd rather not recall， but that sense of connection is still validating。 In her final chapter， I felt hope and joy at hearing her describe childbirth and her body performing exactly as it was built to do。 It was a beautiful ending to her book， the start of her life as a mother。 。。。more

KarnagesMistress ，

I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways。 It is an advance reader's edition。 I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways。 It is an advance reader's edition。 。。。more

M。 ，

I won an advanced reader copy in a Goodreads giveaway。 My opinions are my own。 Any quotes from the ARC that I share are not guaranteed to appear in the final version。 In my early twenties， it had never occurred to me that the women who gained their power from beauty were indebted to the men whose desire granted them that power in the first place。 Those men were the ones in control， not the women the world fawned over。 Facing the reality of the dynamics at play would have meant admitting how limi I won an advanced reader copy in a Goodreads giveaway。 My opinions are my own。 Any quotes from the ARC that I share are not guaranteed to appear in the final version。 In my early twenties， it had never occurred to me that the women who gained their power from beauty were indebted to the men whose desire granted them that power in the first place。 Those men were the ones in control， not the women the world fawned over。 Facing the reality of the dynamics at play would have meant admitting how limited my power really was -- how limited any woman's power is when she survives and even succeeds in the world as a thing to be looked at。 I read My Body eagerly， nodding， and highlighting along。 Emily Ratajkowski is a famous beautiful woman reflecting on her relationship with her body， and ways that men have felt entitled to touch it， profit off it， treat it as property。 You don't have to be a famous beautiful woman in order to relate to a lot of this。Emily's goal when she entered into a modeling career was to make money while she could。 She felt her body was hers to do with what she would like， and that there was power in being successful。 And that seems so empowering and relatable -- what women hasn't felt strong when making a choice concerning this vessel？ Saying yes， or saying no， uncoerced。 Emily has been told all her life she's beautiful， that she should model。 Her mother， a beautiful woman in her own right， is thrilled to have a beautiful daughter。 Emily is clearly so much more than this， but she learns early on that her face and body are valued。 The issue， and this is something that you don't need to be a model， to experience， is that the type of beauty society values has a short shelf like。 So girls and women spend a lot of time worry about who's prettier， and enter into a competition that stops us from finding strength in one another。 We enter into a losing battle， a rigged game。 There's no winning， only various paths to losing。 So， Emily enters into the system as a young woman， and time and time again encounters men who either "blur the lines" or erase them。 They feel entitled to grope， penetrate， and profit off her body -- while cutting her out of the profits。 I don't feel she's a victim， or that she sees herself as one， but her experiences educated her， made her stronger， more in control， and able to see through the veil。 Emily names names， but it doesn't feel salacious， just honest and empowering。 If I have a criticism， there's an irony in writing a book about being judged for your body， and then running down the looks of the men who've creeped on you。 It's a small criticism， because it's not like these powerful men are going to lose anything， or have needed to place the same care on their looks。 And it's not like she focuses on trashing them -- she in describing them is masterful with subtly cutting descriptors。 I found the chapter on the Blurred Lines shoot to be so poignant， not just for the passage that made headlines。 The video was directed by a woman， the set was filled with women。 Emily was having a blast before the men showed up。 She was dancing like she would with her friends。 She felt safe。 Those moments sound like a dream -- women in the company of other women not having to worry， protect egos， ward off advances。。。 And then Robin Thicke showed up and drunkenly groped her。 But it was really nice before that。 With that one gesture， Robin Thicke had reminded everyone on set that we women weren't actually in charge。 I didn't have any real power as the naked girl dancing around in his music video。 I was nothing more than the hired mannequin。 Highly recommended， can't wait to pass this on。 I don't know if the author worked with a ghostwriter， but I really like her voice。 。。。more

Iris Blake ，

The early sampler （advance reader copy） of Emily Ratajkowski’s essay collection， My Body， forthcoming from Metropolitan in November 2021， promises the literary form of the same commodified exhibitionism the author describes in her experience as a ‘mannequin，’ a model。 But we get something better， sexier。 We get humility and intelligence， a keenly observant， writerly mind。 Using the French word for ‘model’—mannequin—to describe herself， Ratajkowski means to invoke the pejorative， seeing herself i The early sampler （advance reader copy） of Emily Ratajkowski’s essay collection， My Body， forthcoming from Metropolitan in November 2021， promises the literary form of the same commodified exhibitionism the author describes in her experience as a ‘mannequin，’ a model。 But we get something better， sexier。 We get humility and intelligence， a keenly observant， writerly mind。 Using the French word for ‘model’—mannequin—to describe herself， Ratajkowski means to invoke the pejorative， seeing herself in the role as an empty， plastic， woman-shaped hanger。 She knows it’s a role， but， hey， going naked， especially in her body， sells。 There’s a sense in her writing that， now that everyone who wants to has already seen her totally nude， she’s trying to figure out what’s left to take off。 She seems to believe that writing confessional， nonfiction narrative requires a humiliating baring， much like modeling has demanded of her， so she strips herself to the bone。 She’s not wrong。 What we find in this public display isn’t vapidity or an integrity too damaged to manage coherence。 What we find is humanity， depth。 Laudably， Emily Ratajkowski is more captivating as text than as sex—not that she isn’t selling the latter， too。 From time to time， she mistakes her humility and intellect for a debilitating insecurity and flagellates herself for their existence。 Yet， her keen observations， her sensitivity， reveal the development of a raw， rare wisdom that more commonly arrives much later in life。 While her unabashed capitalism is admirable， I wouldn’t recommend embodying her brand of it。 Her determination for financial success shows a smart， wry， brave young woman， who willingly， even eagerly， endures work as a model。 She’s fetishized， abused， assaulted and demoralized， which tarnishes the deal， devalues the money， but she survives。 She gets through it all by consciously entering dissociative states resembling techniques for surviving prison life， which， yeah， mars the dream。 Her claim that she does it for the cash isn’t new and it’s only empowering if we recognize that every industry comes with risks。 Most industries， however， don’t require posing topless with barn animals while dancing too close to wasted， male pop stars who have grabby hands。 But we’ve long since sung the praises of uber-hot chicks with agency who capitalize on their Holy Shit looks。 The controversy around the 2013 music video， “Blurred Lines” （Robin Thicke， T。I。 and Pharrell Williams）， criticized for perpetuating misogyny， both brought Emily Ratajkowski’s name to the fore and contributed to a necessary discussion of women’s own use of their bodies for gain。 She cut her teeth with that video。 The uproar both defined her in a way she finds unfortunate， but which， too， she recognizes as her golden ticket。My Body is a hotter， healthier ticket， both for its author and for the girls and women who are mesmerized by the sirens of skin， skinniness and sex as their path to power。 What’s delightful and unique about these few， racy pages is watching Ratajkowski move through the world with the awkward grace of a shockingly beautiful， exotic baby-bird who’s convinced herself that walking in stiletto heels through midday Manhattan in a pair of black tights too sheer for the sun is going to turn into a win-win kind of day。 Her vulnerability and ridiculousness are stunning and exist on the same page with her equally notable Amazonian strength and learned pragmatism。 There’s an acerbic wit holding back that I hope to see more of when the full book publishes this fall。 Her ferocity on the page thus far， summons the image of a dangerously underweight， dark-haired Plath-lite teetering from the Barbizon Hotel to Mademoiselle’s offices on her fateful first day as guest editor there— wearing nothing but transparent-plastic hot pants。 I want to see more of Ratajkowski—in text。 。。。more

Mary Tharp ，

Great insight into women。

Nora Rawn ，

I should confess I read a sampler from the publisher， not the full book--and I most likely won't read the collection， since I have a sense of what it says。 But Ratajkowski is a good writer， and while her experiences place her in a small and of course wildly successful class， they also reveal how success can have its underside even at that level， how relying on one's body to get ahead means an odd relationship with *being* embodied， and these trade offs are ones that we as a culture are partly re I should confess I read a sampler from the publisher， not the full book--and I most likely won't read the collection， since I have a sense of what it says。 But Ratajkowski is a good writer， and while her experiences place her in a small and of course wildly successful class， they also reveal how success can have its underside even at that level， how relying on one's body to get ahead means an odd relationship with *being* embodied， and these trade offs are ones that we as a culture are partly responsible for， and ones that reveal how patriarchy controls everyone in its orbit。 Very revealing and personal， but with much food for thought even living a very different life。 Fascinating and worth picking up。 Will be curious to see where her career goes from here！ 。。。more

Jonas Stephan Johnson ，

God so good Corking

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=My Body

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=My Body&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,My Body&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0