Bridget Jones's Diary

Bridget, the protagonist and narrator, uses her diary to track her progress toward her many New Year’s resolutions and focuses specifically upon her hopes for a slimmer physique, an increase in professional and social success and personal composure, and most importantly, a stable romantic partner. However, because she is inordinately focused on improving herself, she inevitably finds herself focusing on her perceived flaws, and this mindset causes her to devalue herself rather than gaining a healthier perspective on her life. For example, her negative relationship with her own body is established in her unrealistic goal to “reduce [the] circumference of [her] thighs by 3 inches” (3). Fielding uses many key details to critique the protagonist’s unhealthy fixation on her weight, for most daily entries begin with a listing of Bridget’s current weight, along with a recitation of the calories, cigarettes, and alcohol units that she has consumed. This unique narrative structure stresses the fact that weight and eating habits remain a central factor in the fluctuating levels of Bridget’s self-esteem. Rather than inspiring her to feel better about herself, these measurement usually provide fuel her self-loathing, for she frames herself as flawed and inept and frequently chastises herself for her failure to live up to impossible standards.