“Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels”

Abstract

There has always been something compelling about extreme bodies. Kate Moss exemplifies “the waif,” a body type both frightening and appealing. She is one of the most common celebrities discussed on pro-anorexia (or, pro-ana) websites. To explore the connection between Moss’s body and pro-ana participation, this article examines the potential for an extraordinary body to solidify the aims of an extremist group and to draw in new members. Her unusually slender form affirms this pro-starvation cluster by physically representing the emotional distress that lies at its core. There is no conclusive evidence that Moss suffers from an eating disorder, and she has been open about discouraging people from starving themselves to look like her. Nevertheless, she has been framed as a unique icon in the pro-ana sphere, despite her personal intent, due to the extreme nature of her body. She helps members to express mental illness and severe emotional distress via an emaciated frame and grungy-but-cool aesthetic. She therefore gives people a way to explore sickness and femininity concurrently, which is especially relevant for young women with eating disorders. The pro-ana community has adopted her as a cult icon for these reasons. Here, I analyse this process using Rodney Stark and William Sims Bainbridge’s sociological scholarship on the social role of religion broadly and “cult formation” more specifically. This raises important questions about consent in cult formation and the role required of a leader.