Face it, we are all beautiful.
Really, we all are, aren’t we? think about it, we’re only as beautiful as we think we are. The reason why many people suffer from the lack of finding themselves beautiful is due to the yardstick set on the definition of beauty. ”having beauty; having qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction to see, hear, think about, etc.; delighting the senses or mind” (Http://www.dictionary.com) This means we ourselves will determine how we categorise what is beautiful to us.
Take a look at the article below
http://www.inquisitr.com/34194/glamour-model-lizzie-miller-shocks-readers-by-not-being-airbrushed/
Glamour model Lizzie Miller shocks readers by not being airbrushed
Lizzie Miller
Glamour readers are fangirling like crazy over “plus size” model Lizzi Miller.
Miller turned heads in the latest issue because of the simple fact that she resembles most readers of the fashion mag. Miller, 20, is a size 12-14 and not even technically “plus sized,” but her curvy shape is still alien to the airbrushed pages even of slightly progressive Glamour magazine.
Grateful readers flooded Glamour with emails, prompting a blog post about “the woman on p. 194″:
The emails were filled with such joy–joy at seeing a woman’s body with all the curves and quirks and rolls found in nature. (Raising a question: With all the six-packs out there, do you even know what a normal belly looks like anymore–other than the one you see in the mirror?)
And of the attention, Lizzi is grateful, too. She says:
“When I read them I got teary-eyed!” she says. “I’ve been that girl, flipping through magazines trying to find just one person who looked a little bit like me. And when I didn’t find it I would start to think there’s something wrong with the way that I looked. When J. Lo and Beyoncé came out and were making curves sexy, I started to accept myself more. It’s funny, but just seeing them look and feel sexy enabled me to do the same.”
So what do you think? Does Lizzi Miller look fantastic or is this lowering standards for stick thinness industrywide?
non-airbrushed!
—-
It’s funny that it took a professional model working at Wilhemina, a top modelling agency in the US, to do what the education systems worldwide have been doing : a healthy body doesn’t necessarily mean a flat stomach. That’s the real irony as modelling agencies would try to hide the flaws of their models e.g flabby gut.
(which would make me question the motive of this shoot: actual promotion of healthy body image or cheap publicity ploy? but I digress.)
Does the media have such power over the definition of beauty?
The media has a very powerful influence & hold on the perception of beauty. Thanks to its broad availability to the masses, the idea of a good looking person is easily convinced to the public. We see young girls wanting to grow up so fast, by wearing make up so thick that it would look like the circus came to town. Guys feel that a six pack would be the only thing on their stomachs . Why? Their perspective on beauty is set on what they see in their tween magazines & youth programmes.
We are influenced by the media according to how relevant it is to us. Let’s say, if there was a cornflakes commercial that featured happy asian kids eating the cereal, an older caucasian man wouldn’t be as convinced to buy the cereal as say, a chinese tween.
Coming back to the article, it has made a lot of viewers proud, particularly those with similar physical traits, of what they have. In the article itself, after the magazine was published, many women celebrated the idea of a non-stick thin model appearing and baring all in a photoshoot. They (the viewers) praised the publishers for showing “curves and quirks and rolls found in nature”
Though news will never decompose, it will fade in time, and if the publishers or the team behind this perception-proposal want it to be something more permanent, I’d suggest doing a series or a line of similar themes (celebriting unconventional beauty) as a follow up. Afterall, articles fade and are quickly forgotten due to the rapid frequency of change in fashion and media.
I would have probably forgotten the article in a few weeks time unless this would be made into something more frequent. This is due to the lack of constant exposure to the masses. If a pattern is repeated, us viewers would have a higher chance of remembering its message (assuming that the environment is ideal & noise factor is negligible)
before I conclude, here is Dove’s take on the mangling of original beauty in this ad. Perception/ Deception at its best!
and thus, upon celebrating the idea that being stick-thin is no longer in, I shall indulge with what i call heaven in a bowl i.e double scoop of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia. Enjoy!
Total Word Count: 539 (without references)
September 13, 2009 at 3:07 pm |
I LOVE THE DOVE AD THE MINUTE IT CAME OUT!
Its so fresh, and it uses REAL women (whether or not they’re slim) and no digital effects were used to enhance their beauty. What you see is what you get.
Seriously, I think the media have really overrated beauty, and what is beautiful. Everyone is beautiful, is just how you see ‘beauty’ as.
As the saying goes, ‘There’re no ugly girls, just lazy ones.’
September 13, 2009 at 3:20 pm |
read this awesome article before, but you gave me a better insight. I think that people should start embracing their own curves, and stop trying to be rail-thin model looking, because not everyone are blessed with good genes. But, still, i guess despite Glamour featuring a plus-size model, i guess it still gonna take some time before people actually accept that “size 10-12″ is alright.
September 13, 2009 at 3:22 pm |
We know that the world is still a good place when a magazine like Glamour dares to publish such pictures. We don’t need more pictures to compare ourselves with.
Agreed, we need more if this! We need to know what normal looks like every now and then.
September 13, 2009 at 3:27 pm |
Everybody has their own opinion of being beautiful, and our opinions are largely shaped by what media presents us. It has made us to think that Thin is Sexy and Make Up is Hot. While I won’t deny that to me thinner people are more attractive, because most of fit people work pretty hard to maintain their body. But for the people who are unable to look like you could be on a cover shot of a magazine, it’s great what she’s doing to promote a healthier way of thinking.
There’s a fine line between being “healthy” and being big and fat (and lazy).
September 13, 2009 at 4:06 pm |
i agree! I think that the media has a big role to play in perpetuating these images as “ideal”. The situation has improved somewhat but previously, when all you saw on television, magazines and movies were stick thin, gorgeous (airbrushed to death) people, the viewing public was left to think that those were the only people around.
Even an attempt to put “non-ideal” people as central figures in some shows (such as Ugly Betty) had unintended effects. I’m not sure what intentions the producers of Ugly Betty had in mind when they developed the show but if they intended to portray a non-stereotypical stick-thin-high-cheekbones-perfect-orthodontia character as central protagonist in a good light, I believe they failed.
Labeling Betty “Ugly” might have been smart/witty, but it had unintended effects. Many people now use the phrase as an insult to friends.. (eg. “You look like a tv star… Ugly Betty..”)
Another bone I have to pick with media companies is how artistes change in appearance over time. It seems the longer an artiste is in the entertainment industry, the slimmer and better-looking they become. Even when some actors have to put on weight for specific roles, they shed the pounds after the role within weeks. Have you seen an actor keep the fats they “cultivated” after the role?
However, I must note that there has been a significant improvement in the assigning of roles to actors regardless of their looks or size. Many actors have been lauded as beautiful/gorgeous despite (or sometimes even because of) their looks.
Britney Spears may not have gotten her pre-pregnancy-pre-kfed body back but already people are applauding her return to form and compliments about her “bangin’ bod” are aplenty despite her not being stick thin.
I believe there is hope yet for the world =)
September 13, 2009 at 4:09 pm |
haha hey bro. Well I dislike the fact that the media defines beauty through the extensive “beautification” created from the power of photoshop but this is really hard to avoid. Everywhere you look, you see a model on some advertisement looking unrealistically hot or beautiful (Especially the very stupid shampoo ads which make hair look like a satin sheet.)
The chase for beauty has also resulted with many setbacks, take Karen Carpenter for example. She kept thinking that she was fat even though she was stick thin and eventually she died from heart failure due to her eating disorder. Many others have suffered when they compare themselves to what they see on television and magazines and constantly feel that they are fat. I’m not trying to say that the media is evil, but generally, people need to feel less insecure of themselves and learn to accept themselves for who they really are be it short, fat, tall, skinny, hairy, whatever else that comes to mind.
September 13, 2009 at 4:21 pm |
it’s true that media shapes the masses. but isn’t it also true that masses shape the media as well? someone probably did his/her homework with the consumers (us) and found that we’re sick of having stick-thin models gracing the covers of every mag/runway/ad. this is all driven by a very simple yet fundamental economic theory – without demand, there will never be supply.
that said, i do celebrate the fact that more and more people are happy with their own figures – it’ll drive a decrease in anorexic/bulimic cases although i’m not sure how slimming companies will react. :p
also, i personally think that the Dove beauty campaign is just an alternative marketing strategy to sell more bottles of body wash. (apparently, it’s ok to be fat, but it’s not ok if you do not have smooth and supple skin… so you better start using DOVE!)
(i admit this is totally subjective. you know i have a personal agenda against certain companies that start with U.
September 13, 2009 at 4:50 pm |
its a good write up
September 14, 2009 at 12:38 am |
I say push your argument further. Most people just point the finger at the media as if it’s a single monolithic agency responsible for so many evils and perpetuating so many lies in our world today. But it’s not, at the working level, it’s made up of many single individuals. Sure you can bring in Herd Effect and how the confluence of the Gatekeeper theory and power relationships in large bureaucracatic agencies enforces a hegemonious presentation of mass media. But it’s closer to the truth to say that these individuals are part of a culture that values such physical attributes as beauty. Facial symmetry, BMI and WHR have been taken as markers in deciding who to mate with (Evolutionary Psychology) from before the recent emergence of a mass media. Of course, the notions of beauty have been fluid, highly dependent on physical and societal values. Therefore, it is more useful to consider the Niche Construction Theory vis-a-vis the Mass Media (much as I dislike construing as a single entity) and how this feedback loop creates a specific type for Beauty.
In other words, the media is made up of people, the polarised approach is too simplistic.
September 14, 2009 at 5:34 am |
beauty is subjective and has always been, as is evident from the various ‘definitions’ and ‘standards’ for beauty that are passed down through the ages.
fast forward to the 21st century and we have our own mould for beauty, sought after and emulated by millions, who have the luxury to. that is, i am talking about beauty that is dominated by contemporary and urbanised ideals.
while it is easy to point the finger at the media for the proliferation of such twisted and lopsided images of what makes a person beautiful, it would also be prudent to look at it from another angle: what the media portray is merely an affirmation and reinforcement of social norms and conventions. who is to say that we, ourselves, are any less to be blamed for the ideal of a size 0 or washboard abs? see it as a vicious cycle, if you will, but i doubt this concept of beauty is not going away anytime soon, even as we are immediately repelled and take the moral high ground.
September 14, 2009 at 5:47 am |
I suppose that in this time and age, the perception of beauty has been handed down through the generations so much so that it is almost like a built in system in our brains. What makes it worse is that everywhere one goes, the stick-thin perception of beauty is being thrown into one’s face almost across all media, be it in televisions, magazines, posters, signboards, etc.
I guess, what i’m trying to say is that such “ancient” perceptions of beauty does not change over night and although there are few that acknowlege that beauty is not stick-thin, as long as someone out there is still embracing the stick-thin concept, this perception of beauty will continue to knock on our doors.
September 14, 2009 at 8:10 am |
I do agree with you that to a certain extent, the media does shape our definitions of certains things such as beauty. Articles do disappear in a matter of time, but the picture remains deeply etched in our minds.
However, I don’t think beauty should be defined in only one way.
It’s hard to think how our society will progress if we stereotype everything.
Do comment on my blog too!
Kai Ting
http://commmediadiscourse.wordpress.com
September 14, 2009 at 12:26 pm |
Beauty is the way you perceive it to be, you can be beautiful as long as you feel comfortable with the way u look and not the way people judge you. So i think SELF CONFIDENCE is key to beauty! =p
September 14, 2009 at 1:36 pm |
hi izzy!
OMG ! i love this post! it’s such a refreshing change from the usual stick thin, anorexic looking models we often see in magazines! i agree with your patterns theory! unless such advertisements are being repeatedly shown again and again, otherwise, it’s effects will wear off sooon. Afterall, it still is majority versus minority isn’t it? many advertisements still believe in portraying thin, tall models as part of their product promotion and thus, the effects of this advert will vanish if it is just one time thing.
also, i feel that the media play a really huge role in guiding people towards stereotypes in society. people tend to believe in whatever the media show them because it is easier to agree and follow in the media than to stand up for what is right. good post! look forward to more of your posts(:
September 14, 2009 at 1:40 pm |
The pursuit of beauty doesn’t end, does it? People are always in constant search for perfection – and yes, thanks to the media. The media unfortunately, creates an image that, “No, it’s not alright if you’re unpretty,” and “Yes, it’ll be perfect if you’re beautiful.” People are then caught up in the hype, so engrossed in the chase that no one stops and says, “Hey, beauty is innate. It’s in all of us!”
From my POV, the media serves up its own negatives and positives, depending on the issue. It is a powerful tool which can inform and engage, or in other words like Kai Ting said, stereotype, and create images that become fixated into our heads. This is also where our perception comes into play.
Okay that’s all HAHAHA
-DEBBIE
September 14, 2009 at 2:11 pm |
This is definitely controversial in identifying ourself with what’s more humane rather than conforming to what the media often propagates as ‘beautiful’. For decades, the ideal perception of beauty was exemplary by stick thin models strutting down the runway, and it is almost a condemning fact that some people were born plus sized. It is therefore a relief that new age fashion is starting to embody human nature more effectively and allows for slightly overweight(with regards to the modeling industry) or rather average sized people(on the streets) to infiltrate into the fashion industry. Whitney Thompson, the winner of ANTM Cycle 10 is a testimony to supplement your entry.
Fashion IS evolving and people should make way for the fact that it is, although I recognize the fact that this mindset may take a long time to change. After all, clothes on thin models are apparently more sellable compared to those on plus sized models. However, a kick start to a more well accepted notion of beauty-that-does-not-come-with size would hopefully eradicate teen problems like bulimia and anorexia.
September 14, 2009 at 3:35 pm |
I guess there’s line in between healthy and beauty. A fine example will be a person’s set of teeth. Some people are just born with croaked teeth. But for a six pack, I believe most health magazines will say lose the gut because of it’s health implication.
Beauty is definitely defined by ourselves not by media. However, it’s also an inevitable truth that media has the capabilities to make us believe otherwise.
There’s two parts to beauty, inner and outer. Outer beauty is something we’ve grown to be part of since young – how the cuter guys always get the girls and how the cheerleaders always make guys drool over them. It’s superficial but it’s already a reality.
Inner beauty, sadly, ain’t something our fast paced society is able to appreciate. So often we’re expected to make an impression immediately on our first meeting.
The definition to true beauty is undeniably one of the most controversial issue . I’ve this interesting article that did a small test to see if the better looking people gets better treatment than people defined as ordinary or ugly. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3917414
September 14, 2009 at 3:35 pm |
Thanks for touching on this topic. Very perceptive, indeed! I thoroughly enjoyed reading through what you wrote. And here’s my two cents’ worth:
I certainly agree that the media has focused on the hot babes and hunks (think FHM and Men’s Health) and much effort has been put in to place them on the covers of magazines and ad and posters, etc.,
However, I actually pause to consider whether it is the media that has influenced our perception of beauty because in my opinion, it is up to the masses to like what they see. Take for instance, if a magazine stall sells only 2 women’s magazines, whereby one cover features Heidi Klum and the other features the British singing sensation Susan Boyle, which magazine do you think the public will purchase? I personally do not think that the media is forcing its own perception of beauty down our throats. Instead, it is responding to what the masses demand to see or read.
I know, I know. This all sounds oh-so-shallow. But really, the truth hurts, does it not? Practically, in the working world, I’ve read that attractive-looking people tend to get jobs ahead of their not-as-good-looking counterparts. This can be seen in other contexts as well. Awesome-figured girls walking down the street get more attention than the ordinary girl-next-door ones.
On a personal level, I know that I am a not-too-good-looking-bloke. (Ha.) So when I’m with a better looking guy friend, a random girl-friend can sometimes come up to the 2 of us and tell my good-looking friend (in front of me) about how her friends think he is good-looking and that they want to get to know him. Of course, I’m used to it already. Sad, huh? But my point is this: people have their own perception of what beauty is, and the media is just doing what it does best: take what the public likes, print them on magazine covers, sell them, and make big bucks.
Looking at this issue from another perspective, I dare say that this can also be a case of which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg. On one hand, the media focused on what they think is beautiful, and they influence how we perceive beauty. On the other hand, like what I have discussed above, the media may simply be responding to what the public already has in mind in terms of beauty.
As for me, looking at how society responds to better-looking people and speaking from personal experience, I submit that the media is basically trying to make a living by churning out materials that the public loves.
And for the not-so-beautiful people like me, here’s the harsh reality: the truth hurts! I think it’s best that we come to terms with how we really look and not blame the media for choosing not to focus on us
September 16, 2009 at 5:54 am |
Moodily introspective; beauty is not governed by strict dimensions but a mere perception of what one’s sensory manifestations distinct the subject as of satisfaction.
The media here, plays a quick trick to influence and hopefully affirms its opinion infiltrates our decision. Fashion statements, broadcasts drop hints and ideas tend to lead a belief, at times fabricate truths. Its almost like when everyone believes in it, its almost real. even when its really just a fairytale.
Marketing campaigns and strategies, they never end as long as the human races’ still living and breathing with the demand for products. Lets face it. We all need something to make ourselves feel special and important. Who can blame the media for targeting these needs and twitching the fine line between the needs and wants; who wants to be fat, and don’t we feel the need to be slim most times.
At the end of the day, yours truly cant help but be strongly compelled to believe its up to one’s decision to distinct its own perceptions of what beauty really is or lies in and not borrow a view dictated from the common. Choices are decisions we choose to make.
-my 2cents.
September 16, 2009 at 1:39 pm |
PLS IGNORE MY FIRST COMMENT! I DIDN CHECK THROUGH IT! THIS IS THE CORRECT ONE! HAHA SORRY FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE CAUSED
Great choice of subject there Issac! Especially since the world is getting increasingly image conscious these days. This is utterly relevant to today’s society.
I personally feel that the thin ideal being promoted on runways and magazines these days simply thwarts our perception of beauty. Since when are we only beautiful when we are thin? Women like Lizzi Miller show us that being truly beautiful is being confident in your own skin! Kudos to her! In fact, I think not loving your own body is simply shameful. Everyone should learn to love themselves!
I agree with you that the media definitely influences the way we define beauty. Truth is, beauty has been commercialized. Beauty has lost its true meaning and value. Being educated young adults, we should definitely adopt a purer concept of beauty and not be swayed by media influences!
September 18, 2009 at 1:11 pm |
It’s good to see that you’ve brought up this topic on beauty as it is very relevant to the society today, especially to people around our age. Many of us are so caught up with the notion of beauty and vanity that we have become very self-conscious and often become unhappy as a result. For example, I have a friend who refuses to go out just because she has pimples and is ‘too ashamed’ to see anyone. People often judge others based on the clothes they wear and will always comment on the person’s figure. One thing I have realised is that many people are obsessed with beauty because of their inferiority complex. They might seem very confident and well-dressed with trendy clothes but subconsciously they place so much emphasis on outer beauty due to the low self-esteem they have within themselves. This advertisement has brought a fresh of air to this society so preoccupied with self-image. It sends out a message reminding all of us that true beauty lies within us, not on the exterior.
September 19, 2009 at 4:18 am |
The biggest women’s problem Ive known in every country is always about weight. I have a friend that she’s loosing her weight from around 50s to 43. I dont know what she’s done for loosing that much weight, but what I know is she doesnt even eat along the weekdays, only eats fruit for her dinner and just has lunch on the weekend with a little rice.
Yeah, its kinda crazy, but I know that she’s eager to be a model, but by doing that strict-insane diet seems you hate the way you are now.
I think media has the biggest impact for us, whether direct or indirectly. Let’s take this women aspect , evethough they take their own perception that they’re fat, where does that perception come from? MEDIA…
So, I definately agree that media impact most of our life
The pride we get by having an ideal body like they promoted might be so interesting, but by being ourselves and doing anything that make ourselves relaxed and happy is more than that. Beauty is not only talking about a proporsional body, pretty face, and so on. Inner beauty, I think, is the most “unbeatable weapon” for most of the women Ive known.
September 21, 2009 at 6:31 pm |
Wow.
Do you have to be beautiful to be star, or do they make star’s look beautiful?
September 25, 2009 at 7:57 am |
Gosh, i love the dove movement for true beauty, and the vid at the end of your blogpost. I personally have a definition of beauty, and I was told it was a platonic definition of beauty. Beauty is fittingness. It is finding peace with yourself, your surroundings, your relationships, your waist size. The moment we start to have an attitude of discontentment, it spoils everything!
There is a contentment that pushes us to become better. This kind of ‘discontentment’ is a healthy movement from content to more content. The kind that is unhealthy would be the kind that denies who you really are and who you were made to be. Personally, it wasn’t easy to find contentment within myself. Almost IMpossible. But when I found this love that loved me unconditionally, it became hard not to love myself.
This Love found me, I found myself. Only when I found myself (to be lovely) did I find my direction and my way. Only when I found out where I was standing, was I able to move forward towards my goals in life.
November 6, 2009 at 8:23 am |
Some how the standard of beauty is set by how the media perceives beauty which influences everyone in the end. Everyone is beautiful in their own way I suppose and who is to judge that round noses or double chins are not pretty ? At the end of the day is how everything is put together as a package and that includes carrying of oneself.
Cheers.
November 6, 2009 at 7:26 pm |
I think the more we are exposed to media, the more we are immune to it, or the more we indulge in it.
we need to regulate our standards and not be influenced by what we see. Making individual decisions means it is alright to judge yourself harshly…WHY LET OTHERS DO THE JUDGING? be the benchmark-setter of your own life!
Too fat? Too saggy? one needs to perk up his senses, tighten his cognition, and slim down his dependence on what the media has ‘instilled’. That way, we can strut our way down the path of real confidence rather than one that is filled with judgements by the world.
November 7, 2009 at 3:30 pm |
Hi Isaac!
Indeed, the media has always been a huge influence on us on many aspects of our lives and body image is no exception. It is sad that so many people these days are obsessed with the way they look and feel compelled to adhere to this “yardstick”.
However, even though the media plays a part in shaping our perceptual set, I can’t help but think that since the beginning of time humans have already had a mindset of what is beautiful and what isn’t. Culture also plays a part as we can see from the long neck tribes where the longer the women’s necks are the more beautiful they seem. In a city like Singapore, however, that may be seen as strange and unattractive.