This is why I do not have many female friends because spending my time denigrating other women for whatever reason does not appeal to me.

I have mentioned before that we girls were raised to be part of a competition with the best boy as the presumptive prize. I didn't want to win the best boy; I wanted to beat him lol

No, not all women are like the OP describes because I am not like that but I absolutely agree with her that this is how we were/are being raised.

It's becoming a bit less common as more of us raise our daughters to be the doctor rather than marry the doctor but I see it still happening with my granddaughter's generation.

By the way, media depictions are a part of our socialization, since people keep referencing media depictions. It is why there is an urge for better representation and more representation because research has demonstrated how beneficial representation and detrimental lack of representation, can be on developing minds/kids.

Thanks for your replies everyone. Just a reminder although your experiences may vary or deviate from the norm or trends, they do not equal evidence. just because y'all have never seen it or experienced it, does not mean it does not happen. I think we need to separate anecdotes from statistical trends, personally.

I haven't be socialized in this way... I have many close girlfriends from childhood in many shapes and sizes .. it's actually mostly men who I've personally seen this from... And I agree with the previous comments that it's mostly from television shows... Which is mostly controlled by men who want higher ratings... Then people begin to emulate these behaviors on television... So, basically, it's generally men responsible for all of this...

i am a curvy older woman and i have never done such a thing, nor experienced such a thing, frankly. i see it on tv, where it appears to be a myth perpetuated to make us think this is how women not only do but should behave. in real life i have never seen it. moreover, when curvy women say that real women have curves, it is like black lives matter. it is a counter to prejudice AGAINST curvy women. i have actually been discriminated against for being overweight (and the discrimination started when i was just a little bit overweight, too). i have also been discriminated against for being older. i have not turned around and discriminated against younger or slimmer women. i HAVE on occasion seen women presented, for example on tv or in magazine ads, as being beautiful when in fact to me they look anorexic, or like holocaust victims. when i see such things, i may express what i think about what i have seen. this is NOT the same thing as being in constant competition with other women, or being hypocritical or even insecure. there are women who have internalized misogyny; i have not experienced, in real life, the examples of it you mention. real women are supportive, or not, of other women, based on their individual qualities, not based on their being women.

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Yes, I agree. As a slim woman, I often see this. Also that we are thin out of some sort of conformism or attempt to please a man rather than, perhaps, a desire to be fit.

Depends on the groups you hang with...I have always had very supportive and encouraging female friends...if there was competition, it was a friendly one to get promoted at work and never about a man (or woman)...I think a lot of the mindless tv wants to promote this animosity among women...it makes for good ratings and market share. In real life, except for the socially young, perhaps not quite mature, most women do support each other....that has been my experience. I think it might be more prevalent in the less educated rather than an age group...believe me, as an older woman, I have never felt in competition with thinner, younger woman...they have their own stuff to deal with that is different from ours...I will fight you for the last true red lipstick, maybe...

It's called obeying the rules of debate. Debating, not arguing. Attacking the issues, not the person.

There's the lowest (below-the-belt) "hits"...name calling.

The second level - not much better - the polite but obvious "mine's better than yours" or "mine works, yours doesn't"...

It's called...ad Hominem - in Latin -attacking the character ("at the person" ) rather than the issue.

I keep these rules on my desktop....and refer to them often. You're invited to do so if you find them useful...

the west is all about competition. I find it disturbing that a society professing to be egalitarian also says that we should each strive to be better than the other guy.

The fear,of once finding a Man(in Womens sense) for them,and then losing them to another younger,more attractive Woman, permeates all relationships,we all age,wrinkles ,sags, lose of muscle tone, and age spots,this fuels the multi Billion Dollar Cosmetic industries. Competition among Males for Females is almost as bad,especially in the age groups.

Do we?