Oxford defines the term physicality as follows, “The fact of relating to the body as opposed to the mind” (Lexico, Oxford). While, Merriam-Webster defines the term as, “predominance of the physical orientation usually at the expense of the mental, spiritual, or social” (Merriam-Webster). I’m referencing these terms because they are relevant to how many women and young girls are viewed on a daily basis. To be viewed more often as a body than a mind. The same way that girls are less likely to be called on in math class but more often criticized for appearance. More often to be dress coded then asked to write an answer up on the board in stem classes. This is often a daily struggle that goes unnoticed by many. Often times it is reinforced since birth through the media, pop culture, kids cartoons, music, etc. Some examples, would include over sexualized female characters and only including women with the same body type or skin tone. Not only does this cause body image issues for young girls, but it also reinforces the stereotypical expectations of what a girl or woman should be to young boys. This trend is especially seen in video games, superheroes, and some comics. Some well known over sexualized characters include Lara Croft and Harley Quinn. The following picture shows Margot Robbie and her character Harley Quinn. The link posted under the pic goes on to talk about how other countries even photoshopped the length of her shorts. She talks about how uncomfortable she felt wearing the outfit on set but she did it for her character (Dailymail.com).
Another example from my childhood would be Miss Bellum from Power Puff Girls. She had a stereotypical attractive female body with an hour glass figure. However, the most notable aspect of her was the fact that you almost never saw her face. She played the role of a secretary and was always just shown as a body. That being said Power Puff Girls did have alot of great images for young girls regarding their independence and ability to fight and stand up for themselves. It was also one of the few female superhero shows. I am in no way dissing the power puff girls but there is something to be said about how casually characters like this appear in children’s shoes.
Definition Sources:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/physicality
Unruly Bodies 
Sydneya1526,
I cannot help but appreciate your connection to the Powderpuff girls reference, I could only think of things like Dexter’s laboratory that protested a similar style-and surely all women were drawn with stiletto heels. Women were almost deemed faceless? In an extreme fashion, especially during the times these shows were published, it was easily overlooked by many if not all.
Okay so true! I loved miss Bellum growing up and always tried to see her face by looking in from the bottom of the screen up. I remember watching the original teen Titans growing up, and I loved that they all wore t shirts and sweatpants outside of fighting bad guys. But most of the time it was like all the guys in the show wore whatever, the goth chick was always in her underwear and the other girl was always wearing a mini skirt- even in battle. If I’m being honest I thought it was cool but it also made me feel like girls always had to put on a show. The body always had to be on display- even now I feel like I dress uncomfortably or more on display than I want to because I don’t know how to be comfortable being casual or how to see my body at all in more shapeless clothes.
Well said! Personally I loved watching the PowerPuff girls, there were a lot of strong female characters that I admired. However, it was strange to never be able to see miss Bellum’s face, so your interpretation of the reasoning on why we wouldn’t see her face was valid. Of course, there is nothing wrong with embracing the physical aspects of oneself and appreciating the appeal/beauty of their body. However when society capitalizes on the female body and turns women into mere objects without feelings it then becomes an issue, since this effects women in quite negative ways. Personally for me I have struggled with my body image in the past and did not have a lot of confidence in myself due to the fear of society (people) looking down on me thus, I think it is important that people acknowledge that turning women into objects is an awful concept and should be changed.
I appreciate that you mentioned the struggle of girls in math/stem classes. In another one of my classes I am doing a project on the harm that this causes. I can specifically remember being better at math than some of my male classmates, and still being overlooked or talked down to by my teachers. This is so harmful to young girls and really does start at such a young age. I think giving more support and opportunities to girls wanting to get into stem would be extremely beneficial.