ABSTRACT
Is `obesity' an eating disorder? Keeping in mind that many people technically classi®ed as obese eat no more than the rest of the population, we might begin answering this question by asking what it means for a person's eating to be `disordered'. What constitutes `normal' eating? How are ideas about `normal' eating formed and to what extent are people culpable for the way they eat? If a person1 freely and happily chooses to eat what is widely considered an inordinate amount of food, could their eating habits truly be described as `disordered', and if so, why? Does the term `disordered' merely indicate that a behaviour fails to conform to social convention rather than being an objective bio-medical health risk? After all, not all obese people are ill or die young. In addition, no discussion of these questions could avoid the ways in which gender relations shape ideas about `normal' or `desirable' body shapes and `appropriate' eating habits.
