150cm的小不點人生:臺灣小個子女性的身體書寫與發展境遇

Abstract

女性身體（Female Body）向來為眾多學科、理論關注的焦點與議題，「她」亦成為眾聲喧嘩的場域（Field），然而回顧既有觀點以及評述，卻可以發現未有學科融入「身高」（height）的角度來進行思考。本文的主旨，便在於將「身高」納入在女性身體的觀察之中，嘗試去理解小個子女性，即身高介於145至152女性的身體經驗，係處在什麼樣的社會處境（social situation）中。本文以「身體閱讀�書寫」（reading/writing the body）的角度切入，以臺灣大學的小個子女性為對象，試圖在這些小個子女性的經驗中，來瞭解其在社會生理（socio-biological）以及社會文化（socio-cultural）兩個處境之中的實際境況。 本文發現：第一、從小個子女性的身體經驗中，可以發現小個子女性處於「既不正常，但卻嬌小可愛」的處境之中，前者敘述意味著在醫學知識上，身高嬌小被視為是不正常的發育，甚至是一種需要被醫治的症狀，小個子女性在學校的機制之中，往往會被告知自己是不健康的，而在家庭裡，家人亦會擔心其身高不符合健康的發展，而投以中藥等食補藥材，或者求助於西醫健檢，希望她能夠成長到「健康」、「正常」狀態，然而這也代表了身高是受到醫學知識規訓的客體（object），而後者關於「嬌小可愛」的敘述，亦即說明社會文化對於小個子女性投以「可愛」的定義，給予小個子女性形象一種定固化制約與規範。第二、小個子女性，並非是既有女性主義認知的「男性凝視的客體」，本文發現小個子女性無論對「增高墊」或「高跟鞋」抱持什麼想法，皆不否認「增高」可以讓「身材比例」變好看，換言之，小個子女性並不是單純受到社會文化的影響，本身就是一個積極的能動者，建構著自己的身體與「美貌」；第三，本文從小個子女性的生長經驗中發現，「身高」係由一系列知識所建構而成，「正常」與「不正常」的身高之間有著明確的邊界，世界衛生組織所頒布的「孩童生長標準圖」（Child growth standards）便是清晰的例證，此外，這樣的醫學知識更改變了小個子女性的社會關係，成為重要的中介，小個子女性在家庭、學校的互動，即是一種社會關係醫學化的過程；第四，小個子女性提到他人給予的第一印象是「可愛」與「好親近」，她們對於這樣的說法，多半泰然接受，並不會覺得這是負面的說法；本文發現背後原因在於：社會文化除了給予高挑女性定義之外，也給予小個子女性一種可愛、嬌弱、可人、柔順的形象，而這些形象相較於高挑的女性來說，在擇偶的過程中，較不會給予男性壓力，而成為相對較佳的擇偶選項，這也需呼應到何以第一印象會是「好親近的」，而「嬌」此形容詞背後，也一再地凸顯出社會文化對於不同性別、身體的定義與價值觀。 總括來說，本文認為唯有回到「身體」，才能夠去理解不同個體所處的生理（物理）、社會的環境，及身體與環境的所有互動關係。從身體的角度進行閱讀與書寫，如此才得以理解身體背後的各種複雜、綿密過程與關係。

This study aims to explore “an observation of female body’s length.” Try to find out the length between 145~152 centimeters’ female body experiences in what kind of social situation. The research using the ‘the body of reading/writing’ as point of view, and choose rather small in stature girls as targets in Taiwan University. In these small in stature girls’ experiences, to attempt realize the real situation between socio-biological and socio-cultural. This study obtained the following conclusions: first, we can find out the small in stature girls in an ‘off normal, but petite and cutely’ situation. In the medicine knowledge, it is an off normal growth of the length of short. Even it is a symptom that needs to be healed. It is unhealthy when petite girls at school. On the other hand, their families worried about petite girls’ length are not a health growth for them. So they sometime turn to for help from traditional Chinese medical or western medicine. To hope these petite girls grow in to a ‘health’ or ‘normal’ situation. However, it represent the length had a great effect by medicine knowledge object. The meaning of ‘petite’ means the small in stature girls are still getting the ‘cute’ definition of the social culture. Second, petite girls are not ‘the object of male gazing’ in feminism. The study found out those petite girls denying ‘become taller’ could make ‘the proportion of body become well’. In other words, petite girls are not just getting effect of social culture. They form their body and beauty by positive attitude. Third, the study had found out that the length’s constitution by a set of knowledge. It is having defined border of ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’. It is distinct evidence that WHO promulgate the ‘Child growth standards’. In addition, the petite girls had changed the social relationship cause of medicine knowledge, and became an important agent. The interaction of petite girls between family and school is a process of the social relationship in medicalization. Forth, petite girls always give people the feeling of ‘cutely’ or ‘friendly’ in the first impressions. Petite girls also accept this statement and do not feel it’s negative speaking. The social culture not only gives the definition to tall female but give petite girls an image who with cute, delicately and kindly. Compare petite girls with tall girls, petite girls’ imaginations who do not give male pressure. And it also becomes an option of choosing mate. To respond with first impressions, the meaning of ‘petite’ is also giving a definitions and values of different gender and body in the social culture. In conclusion, it is only return to the ‘body’, and could realize physiology, environment of social, body, and environment relationship in different individuals. To proceeding the read and write from the point of view of body, so that to realize the complex processes and relationship of body.