美的思考

The Social Conceptions of Beauty

By Tony Bailey

I look in the mirror, and I'm not happy with what I see. I don't have a “perfect” face. I look in the magazines, and all I see are girls with the blonde hair, blue eyes, and, of course, a cute little nose. They're on the outsides of the buses that I take home, the television programs I watch, and the billboards I walk under. Almost every advertisement I see promotes this human physical “Perfection”. These billboards not only tell me what to drink, but also how to look.

Our society tends to place more importance on a person's physical beauty, rather than their ability, integrity, and character. We have influenced women to go through painful surgeries and starve themselves to become this socially constructed physical ideal. To be a beautiful woman in 21 st century doesn't mean that you are a brilliant doctor or caring mother. It doesn't mean that you can play a violin gracefully or run a marathon. It means you have the perfect jaw structure, eyes and lips. It means you can be six feet tall and weigh one hundred and ten pounds.

People go through many obstacles to reach this ideal weight. For example, to keep in shape, People diet, jog, rollerblade and bike, work out in a gym, and even take pills. There are also more drastic measures that people take to reach this goal. A lot of models have been known to use these tactics for their careers as well. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia are two ongoing diseases affecting our society today.

But what about the women who are starting so leave their prime? Instead of looking at aging as a sign of wisdom and maturity, we attempt to reverse the aging process. It's kind of ironic to want to look eighteen when fifty. Fifty is a relaxed age, where for once you can step back and look at all you've accomplished. It is when your hard work pays off. Unfortunately, our society just sees you as “old ”. To reverse the aging process, woman buy wrinkle creams, do eye lifts and face lifts. They spend thousands of dollars to win the inevitable battle against age. I mean, on my mother's vanity alone, there has to be at least six different creams, each promising to make her skin look “healthier” and “tighter”.

I have proved to you that the society we live in has an obsession with beauty. But who actually tells us what beauty is? The ideas that define beauty have changed so many times. From year to year, clothing styles change. One year leather pants are in style, and the next they're not. If you wear them in season, you are the hottest thing, but if they're out and you wear them, you are mocked.

The preference for particular body types changes as well. Back in the fifties, if a woman was a size one, she was thought of as sickly and frail. Back then, men wanted women with big breasts, curves, and hips. Marilyn Monroe was the ideal size. In the nineties, it is just the opposite. You can never be too skinny. Kate Moss is our ideal woman.

It's unfair to say that we don't respect woman for what they have accomplished. I mean, most people do have role models out there who have affected their lives. The point I'm trying to bring out is that we need more of these role modes who make us better people, rather than better looking. Everyone knows what a terrific woman Mother Teresa was. She helped so many people in her life and gave so much of herself that no one cared about how she looked on the outside. Mother Teresa was not up to “model standard”, as I recall. I don't even think one could see her eyes with all the wrinkles covering them. But the point is no one cared. She reminded people to care about others. Her heart surpassed her appearance.

I remember when I was about thirteen years old and going through puberty. I had braces, greasy hair, and a half developed body. I hated the way I looked. I used to cry to my mother all the time, but she would just laugh and tell me that “ you don't want anyone to like you for your appearance. It's your heart that matters, because beauty fades .” I knew that she was right. If you work on your heart enough, people will start to see the beauty in you, which lasts and lingers on even after you die.