Western Beauty Standards Will NOT Bring Happiness

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Recommended: Universal beauty standards

Introduction

We live in a society that has somehow confused healthy and happy for thin and beautiful, that is, beautiful according to what the media has told us is beautiful. As women, we look to the models in advertising to see how we are supposed to look. They are the ones that set the beauty standards and say what body type is acceptable. We are led to believe that by having such a body, we will automatically have a happier and healthier life. It seems easy enough; all we have to do is acquire the perfect body image and we will be happy, right? Since most women do not have the ideal body, they look to dieting for the answer. There are endless weight loss options found anywhere and everywhere we look. Finding a diet is not the problem. However, it is finding a diet that works that becomes the issue. If dieting worked effectively, women everywhere would be living happy lives looking just like supermodels. Well, this is certainly not the case. Lots of women become frustrated that they cannot get results, therefore, can never be happy.

What if there was another road to happiness? Women want to feel accepted, which is why they want to live up to society’s standards. Maybe it shouldn’t be about having everybody else accept us, but learning to accept ourselves for who we are. I want to make it my goal to help women understand that the happiness they seek should not be limited to a single body type. Anybody can be happy in the body they already have. It is the ideal body found in advertising that sets the beauty standards, influences women to lose weight, and then leaves them with weight loss options that do not work, therefore, no way to the happiness they seek.

History

The concept of the ideal body type has rem...

... middle of paper ...

... life. Living the way we want without trying to meet unrealistic standards is true beauty. Together we can overcome the beauty standards set by society and begin to live our happiest, healthiest, and most beautiful lives yet.

Works Cited

Caitlin. "The Ellipses Project." The Ellipses Project. 14 Jan. 2013. 17 Dec. 2013.

Clinic-Feature, Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LDWebMD Weight Loss. "The Worst Diets Ever: Diets That Don't Work." WebMD. WebMD. 17 Dec. 2013.

"The Dove® Campaign for Real Beauty." The Dove® Campaign for Real Beauty. 15 Dec. 2013.

Macdonald, Myra. "Refashioning the Body." Representing women: Myths of femininity in the popular media. London: E. Arnold, 1995. 192-221.

Parker-Pope, Tara. "The Fat Trap." The New York Times. 16 Dec. 2013.

Stiles, Tara. "What It Truly Means To *Be* Healthy." MindBodyGreen. 31 Jan. 2013. 17 Dec. 2013.

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