What is beauty? It seems as if the very definition of the word changes with every blink of an eye. Centuries ago, society craved fat. In fact, extra flesh was prized because it was a symbol of wealth, status, and royalty. Yet today, we value non-existent waists and thigh gaps. It seems as if beauty is what is hardest to attain; it has become the ultimate prize in life. But by constructing a laundry list of characteristics that qualifies a beautiful person, achieving beauty becomes impossible. In society, beauty is associated with perfection, but the truth is that everyone and everything is imperfect and has flaws. But Mair's piece, "Disability," shows that people doubt their own beauty because they constantly see a better version of themselves in the media. Even worse is that they feel nonexistent because they are not shown in media. People turn to the media to define themselves and find role models, but the media abuses its power. Technologies like Photoshop and plastic surgery skew the perception of possibility and increase the insecurities of women everywhere. Society tries so hard to define beauty that it becomes contorted in the process. Ask yourself, does beauty mean looking like everyone else? These insecurities mask the truth: everyone can be beautiful. Beauty is form and function, and we are all here, alive. Beauty isn't the latest fashion trend, it is the ability to look in a mirror and smile, without judging yourself. Beauty isn't pain, it is being comfortable in your own skin. Real beauty is accepting the truth, and the truth is beautiful.
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I believe beauty is similar to happiness; the conceptions of what is beautiful is always changing in the eyes of both the individual as well as society. Consequently, beauty can never truly be obtained, but only sought after by its chasers. No matter how beautiful an individual is, the individual himself/herself will continue to find flaws in himself/herself and thus will never be considered as perfectly beautiful. Beauty is but an ever-fleeting desire.
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ReplyDeleteI really like this, especially the Dove ad! Bincy and I talked about something like that in class.I also love how you explained the difference in "beauty" long ago and how much of an opposite it is now.
ReplyDeleteTo go off on what you said about how people used to admire fat similarly when I went to Hawaii, a very common, widely-used motto there is "Big is Beautiful". This is truly inspiring because rather than criticizing people for their size, the natives accept everyone. I feel that if this saying is used everywhere, it could help women feel much more confident about themselves.
ReplyDeleteI like how you transition from society's changing definition of beauty to Mairs' piece. I agree that today's society has made beauty an impossible thing to achieve. Also, I really like your last statement, "The truth is beautiful." Nice job Ankita!
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