Determining Beauty

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Over the years, America has become a society that judges beauty based mainly on appearance. Throughout the course of a day, men and women are bombarded with grotesque images of malnourished supermodels selling their own bodies; claiming that they are somehow beautiful. What does it mean to be beautiful? Can self-worth be measured by body weight, clothing size, or shade of lipstick?. “Sometime ago I came across an article in a beauty magazine in which a man said that there were no more ugly women in the world because make-up, weaves, false eyelashes among other beauty treatments have evened out the playing field and has resulted in all women looking the same” ( Gale 1). At the same time, misinformed judgements have caused women to change their physical appearance in order to become more beautiful rather than embracing their own true beauty. To measure beauty effectively one must remember that beauty cannot be determined by physical attributes, but is found in the personality and uniqueness of each individual. To determine what it means to posses beauty, one must keep in mind that the appeal of the flesh will always leave people with the desire for something more. “Western women have become pre-occupied the with concepts of beauty, image and appearance” (Shabaat 6). Society has caused many individuals to believe that the main characteristic of beauty is physical appeal, causing inaccurate interpretations of beauty to become globally accepted. “I concluded that beautiful and perfect women are on the increase and so are the women who feel ugly on the inside” (Gale 1). In order to break free from all misleading exemplifications of beauty, one must always remember that the person in the mirror is not what defines self-worth. Mai... ... middle of paper ... ...re of attractiveness while embracing the personality and unique aspects of an individual. Any other solicitation of beauty requiring something more should be labeled fraudulent and considered nothing more than a way to demolish self esteem. Works Cited Davidson, John, et al : “Engagement With Beauty: Appreciating Natural, Artistic, and Moral Beauty”. 303-329 AcademicOneFile. The Journal of Psychology, 3 Jun. 2007. Web. 8 Sept 2011. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. “Beauty and Women [opinion]”. Galeopposing.com. AcademicOneFile: Africa News Service, 31 May 2011. Web. 8 Sept. 2011. Jakes, T.D: “True Beauty”. AcademicSearchPremier. Essence. Oct 2009. Web. 8 Sept. 2011. Shabaat, Hizb of ut-Tahrir: The Western Beauty Myth. Khilfah Publications. 22 Feb. 2003. Print. Webster, Miriam: Webster”s Dictionary: AcademicOneFile. Web. 8 Sept. 2011.

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