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How does social media influence our picture of beauty
Society unrealistic body image
Society unrealistic body image
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In a society where media rules, appearance means everything. Images of supermodels and celebrities promoting the latest fashions and products constantly bombard consumers promising us that if they buy these products, they too will attain the same level of just glamor. We can’t help but envy the gorgeous women we see in magazines with their perfect smiles and airbrushed breasts and thighs especially when expectations of physical perfection have become so high that they are nearly unobtainable. Marge Piercy’s poem “Barbie Doll” describes how this standard of perfection affects young girls and can carry on throughout their lives causing irreparable damages. Even though this poem was written in 1973, its meaning is more prevalent today than ever before. The occurrence of cosmetic surgery has steadily increased over the years and will continue to do so as long as people nitpick over their bodily flaws. Although, cosmetic surgery is prominent and generally successful, women should refrain from undergoing unnecessary surgery because not only can they become addictive, but also pose serious physical and psychological health risks.
Since childhood, we have been told it’s not what is on the outside, but what is on the inside that matters; on the other hand, as we grew older we were told to make the most of what we have because first impressions count. These conflicting messages cause us to battle with our appearance and what is and what is not important; subsequently, leaving people validating themselves with what they look like on the outside. People are often judged on first appearances, if we feel we look good our confidence increases and our first judgment improves. Primarily, with the economic issues we face today, millions of Amer...
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...elf-loathing, Disappointment, and Even Suicide | Mail Online." Home | Mail Online. 25 Jan. 2011. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. .
Piercy, Marge. “Barbie Doll.” Literature and the Writing Process. Ed. Elizabeth McMahan et al. 9th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2010. 3-7. Print.
"Porn Star Dies after Heart Attack during Breast Enlargement." The Local - Germany's News in English. 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. .
Pruitt, Elana. "Cosmetic Surgery Addiction." Plastic Surgery Procedures – Plasticsurgery.com. 2009. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
"Women in the Workforce Link Cosmetic Surgery to Success." American Society of Plastic Surgeons: The Resource for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 10 Feb. 2009. Web. 09 Feb. 2011.
In a world where many are led to believe that they fall short of what society depicts as “perfect”, it is still true that everyone is beautiful in their own way. There are even more demands on girls now a days than there has ever been before. Some may think they need to fit in, so they become someone they are not or they begin to act like a totally different person. “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy, illustrates society’s high and unrealistic expectations on the physical appearance of women, while failing to see that a woman’s self-esteem is at risk of being diminished.
In Marge Piercy’s, “Barbie Doll,” we see the effect that society has on the expectations of women. A woman, like the girl described in ‘Barbie Doll’, should be perfect. She should know how to cook and clean, but most importantly be attractive according to the impossible stereotypes of womanly beauty. Many women in today’s society are compared to the unrealistic life and form of the doll. The doll, throughout many years, has transformed itself from a popular toy to a role model for actual women. The extremes to which women take this role model are implicated in this short, yet truthful poem.
In today society, beauty in a woman seems to be the measured of her size, or the structure of her nose and lips. Plastic surgery has become a popular procedure for people, mostly for women, to fit in social class, race, or beauty. Most women are insecure about their body or face, wondering if they are perfect enough for the society to call the beautiful; this is when cosmetic surgery comes in. To fix what “needed” to be fixed. To begin with, there is no point in cutting your face or your body to add or remove something most people call ugly. “The Pitfalls of Plastic Surgery” explored the desire of human to become beyond perfection by the undergoing plastic surgery. The author, Camille Pagalia, took a look how now days how Americans are so obsessed
“If Barbie was designed by a man, suddenly a lot of things made sense to me,” says Emily Prager in her essay “Our Barbies, Ourselves” (Prager 354). Prager’s purpose for writing this essay is to explain the history of Barbie and how the doll itself has influenced and continue to influence our society today. Prager is appealing to the average girl, to those who can relate to the way she felt growing up with Barbie seen as the ideal woman. Emily Prager uses a constant shift between a formal and informal tone to effectively communicate her ideas that we view women today based upon the unrealistic expectations set forth by Barbie. By adopting this strategy she avoids making readers feel attacked and therefore
The media has had an increasingly destructive effect on young people who are becoming worryingly obsessed with their body image. The media is saturated in sexual imagery in which young people have to face every day. The sheer volume of sexual imagery in the media today has resulted in the vast majority of young people to become hooked on looking as near to perfection everyday by using the latest products and buying the latest fashions. This used to be enough but lately the next step to achieving perfection is cosmetic surgery. Everyone wants to look attractive, especially teenagers who are not only put under massive strain to succeed but to look beautiful and climb the ranks of the social ladder, and it seems that the only way to achieve the much desired beauty is to turn to drastic measures.
Hoskins, S. (n.d.). The negative effects of barbie on young girls and the long term results. Retrieved from http://www.divinecaroline.com/life-etc/momhood/negative-effects-barbie-young-girls-long-term-results
Sullivan, Deborah A. "Tightening the Bonds of Beauty." Cosmetic Surgery: The Cutting Edge of Commercial Medicine in America. N.p.: Rutgers UP, 2001. N. pag. Print.
Some people’s obsession with plastic surgery is obviously getting out of control. It starts with only getting one thing fixed or corrected but then quickly escalates and before you know it, a face that once was all-flesh turns into plastic. According to a study conducted by Nigel Mercer (2009), “The number of official cosmetic surgeries has more than tripled to 34,000 since 2003”. The two reasons why plastic surgery should be banned are because of its high health risks, and because of the additional pressure it puts on people to look picture-perfect.
"Ten Plastic Surgery Risks You Need To Know." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2014. .
Nowadays, since the number of procedures increases, cosmetic surgery has rapidly developed all over the world. According to an annual report of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) in 2015, the United States is the biggest market of cosmetic surgery in the world. Near 16 million cosmetic procedures were performed in the U.S. in 2015, with the five most common surgeries being breast augmentation, nose reshaping, eyelid surgery, liposuction and tummy tuck (“Plastic Surgery Procedures”).
Flipping through the pages of Vogue's latest edition, 23 year-old Susan seems quite upset. She struggles with the thought of lacking the perfect body and delicate features in order to be considered attractive. Surprisingly, Susan is not alone in this kind of an internal struggle. In contemporary society, every other woman aspires to have the lips of Angelina Jolie and the perfect jaw line of Keira Knightley. Society today looks down upon individuals that do not fit in, whether in terms of body shape or facial attractiveness. This forces them to consider the option of 'ordering beauty.' Since cosmetic surgery is no longer a social taboo in America given its widespread popularity, more people are promoting it which ultimately affects the rest of the world due to the unwavering influence of American culture. Cosmetic surgery should be deterred in the US because it promotes the idea of valuing appearance over ability, gives rise to unrealistic expectations, and brings with it high cost to society.
Stone, Tanya Lee. The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie: A Doll's History and Her Impact on Us. New York: Penguin Group, 2010. Print.
To many, the notion of a teenager undergoing plastic surgery is appalling and unbelievable. For others, such as eleven-year-old Julia, a nose job was able to help her lead a happier and more normal life. To eighteen-year-old Kristen a breast augmentation is a traditional rite of passage of the family. She claims that she “just wanted to look normal,” and that after surgery, she does. (Sweeny, 2009) In these types of cases, cosmetic surgery can be beneficial to the confidence of teenagers in what Ann Kearney-Cooke calls “an epidemic of low self-esteem among girls.” (Sweeney, 2009) Whether it is a physical deformity, such as protruding ears, or simply a lack of something that other peers have, such as large breasts, cosmetic surgery can help teenagers cope with self-worth in a world where beauty is ridiculously selective. However, aside from the confidence-boosting possibilities resulting from teen cosmetic surgery, there are many reasons why it should not be taken lightly for an adolescent. Although cosmetic surgery can potentially be beneficial, there are also many extreme risks for teenagers, including medical complications and in some rare cases death, and thus should be solely a last resort after meticulous analysis for serious cases. Furthermore, neither the adolescent brain nor body is even fully developed.
Goudrea, Jenna. “The Hidden Dangers Of Cosmetic Surgery.” Forbes. 16 06 2011: n. page. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
Heidi Moore, addicted to plastic surgery, racked up $200,000 in debt. Ever since Moore was raped at the age of 16 by two men, she has been trying to erase herself and cosmetic surgery is the only path for her to follow. Before each surgery, says Moore, “I always thought when I wake up, I would not me myself. When the anesthesia lifted, she was herself but with a new chin and bigger breasts. Moore ran $200,000 in debt through plastic surgery. Still, Moore would like one final surgery. "I want my breasts made smaller. I hate them. I got them bigger so people would look at them. Now I want people to see who I am”, said Moore. Because attractiveness has distinct advantages in our community, more people want to do plastic surgery in order to survive in the society. Today’s social media pushes people toward plastic surgery, which is a problem because it has a negative influence on society, ill effect on our bodies and high expense.