How Teen Girls are Portrayed in Today’s Generation

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During today’s generation, teenage girls are put on a certain pedestal of how they should act, look, and dress. Stress and pressure is put upon us girls to follow certain specificities given to us by today’s generation. Television, advertisements, and the internet are the culprits behind what is disrupting teen girls’ self-esteem. Television shows who cast skinny, tan, and beautiful models are giving teens a feeling of how they should look. The “skinny” girls who are portrayed on magazine covers and other advertisements lower a teenage girls’ self-esteem if she does not live up to these high expectations. Popular movies in theaters and on television normally show teen girls or women chasing after boys or older guys. The internet is flooded with ads, pictures, and websites portraying the “ideal image” of a girl. Constant pressure is put upon girls every day to live up to high expectations that are given from today’s generation.
In today’s generation, girls are given high expectations which they are required to live up to. As shown by the media, if a girl is not thin, tall, or tan they are usually not considered to be beautiful. According to, Are Women Portrayed in the Media? It is stated, “The media sells an image of what they deem to be the ideal women; young, tall, thin with the perfect proportions, hair, skin, and teeth. Everywhere you turn we are bombarded with unattainable images which models are manipulated in some cases.” (StudyMode.com). Through these quotations, it is shown how the media portrays how a girl should look, otherwise they are not considered to be beautiful. These constant pressures and ideas come from media sources such as; television shows, beauty commercials, and popular advertisements. According to Why Do ...

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...ly being exposed to the “ideal” body image. As a result, this leads to a negative outlook of a girl’s body image. The majority of young girls try to live up the standards given to us by our generation. In order to do this, we turn to diets, tanning beds, and products that will enhance our beauty because that’s what needs to be done in order to be beautiful.

Works Cited

"Are Women Portrayed in the Media?" StudyMode.com. 11 2012. 2012. 11 2012
Becker, E. Anne. “Television, Disordered Eating, and Young Women in Fiji: Negotiating Body Image and Identity During Rapid Social Change.” Everything’s an Argument With Readings. Ed. Andrea A. Lunsford, John J. Ruszkiewics, and Keith Walters. 6th Ed. Boston Bedford/S. Martins, 2013. 505-511. Print.
Ross, Carolyn C. "Why Do Women Hate Their Bodies?" Web log post. PsychCentral.com. Psych Central, 2012. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

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