Facial Stereotypes

Blackface is a form of makeup used for theatrical purposes, predominantly used by non-black performers portraying a black person. Blackface was mainly used in minstrel shows, also known as minstrelsy, in which Americans would charge others to watch racial and discriminatory performances. Minstrel shows were developed in the early 19th century, and every show was composed of humoristic plays, skits, acts and other visual performances that are meant to mock and make fun of people of African-American descent. The shows were performed mainly by Caucasians using burnt cork as make-up for the purpose of trying to represent a black person. Minstrel shows portrayed black people as stupid, silly, lazy, and happy-go-lucky. Therefore, these shows were made by racist Caucasians that dehumanized African-Americans and made them seem like they were idiots in which they made profit from. Frederick Douglass once said that blackface performers were “…the filthy scum of white society, who have stolen from us a complexion denied them by nature, in which to make money, and pander to the corrupt taste of their white fellow citizens.” The previous quote perfectly summarizes the whole concept of blackface.

“Never Just Pictures” by Susan Bordo, is about how today’s society is influenced by the mass medias unrealistic ideas of how they are supposed to look. In this essay, the author breaks down the images being showcased by today’s culture concerning the aesthetics of the female body. Bordo also talks about how what was considered ‘beautiful’ or ‘perfect’ before has changed. Lately, the world has been on a craze to look like the air brushed model in the picture. Bordo explains how a lot of people are becoming more obsessed with their physique, and depending on looking thin to make them happy, instead of focusing on being happy and healthy.

Throughout the ages, different body types have been considered the ideal. From antiquity to the 1800’s, being thin definitely was not in. The idea that skinny was pretty did not become a major trend until around the 1920’s when females desired boyish figures in line with the popularity of “flapper styles”. As you move to the 50’s the ideal body goes more in the direction of the hourglass and only becomes

Society constantly redefines what beauty is in women, and yet women always feel compelled to conform to society’s definition of beauty. The insecurity of women today adhere to society’s definition of beauty. By conforming to society’s definition beauty they are rewarded with confidence. According to Bordo (1989), anorexia built bodies has become the norm for women today. Most clothing stores accommodate to these body figures by selling majority small and medium framed clothing. Tight and skinny bodies were defined as the next generation of beauty, where priorly in the social symbolism of a small frame was associated with being poor. It was known that those with a bulging stomach was a powerful

For instance, although curvy, the woman’s outstretched arms suggest her openness and accentuate her lean, lengthy figure – definitely not overweight. Rather, her curvy, yet fit body type is regular with the ads and media related pictures that urged ladies to embrace exercise programs amid that decade. At the time, eating routine and activity were acknowledged as fundamental for the prosperity of ladies. The change from simply curvaceous and big breasted to voluptuous and in shape denoted the end of the 1930s and a transition in society to a strong emphasis on weight management and appearance that has continued into the 21st

Then in the 1950's, more voluptuous figures were the ideal. Since that time the ideal body shape for women has become more and more slender (Borzekowski, Robinson, & Killen, 2000). Unfortunately, for many people the ideal thin body is nearly impossible to achieve. This makes women feel dissatisfied with their appearance. Hence the beginning of a negative body image. Recently, researchers have become concerned with the question of how and to what degree advertising involving thin and attractive women is related with chronic dieting, body dissatisfaction, and eating disorders in American females (Stephens & Hill, 1994). The esteemed attention that female thinness culminates began in the United States back in the 1950's (Garner, Garfinkel, & Thompson, 1980). During the last three decades, pageant contestants, fashion models, and famous actresses have grown steadily thinner (Lake, Sweeney, & Wagner, 1999). Twenty years ago the average fashion model weighed only 8 percent less than the average women. Today the average model weighs 23 percent less than the average woman (Dunn, 1992). Surprisingly, as the body standard has continued to thin, the average weight of American women has actually risen. In 1950, mannequins closely resembled the average measurements of a woman. The average hip measurement of mannequins and women was 34 inches. By 1990, the average hip measurement was 37 inches for an average woman, while the average mannequin hip measured only 31 inches

A diseased representation of women, advocated by the media, is detrimental to the American culture (Chittom, N. Page). The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA), asserts an upsurge in eating disorders, inadequate self-esteem, and depression cases are attributed to this illustration (Chittom, N. Page). The portrait of American beauty has transformed greatly over the years (Chittom, N. Page). At the dawn of the twentieth century, beauty centered around abundant chests and minuscule waists, accentuated with tight corsets, but in the 1920’s, this image changed to glorify flat chested “flappers” (Chittom, N. Page). By the 1950’s, the shapely figures were once again popular, but in the 1960’s, with models like Lesley “Twiggy” Hornby, thin was

Images of female bodies are everywhere. Women, and their bodies, sell everything from food to cars. Women's magazines are full of articles urging women to fit a certain mold. While standing in a grocery store line you can see all different magazines promoting fashion, weight loss, and the latest diet. Although the magazines differ, they all seemingly convey the same idea: if you have the perfect body image you can have it all…the perfect marriage, loving children, great sex, and a rewarding career. The media, whether TV, print, or Internet advertising, seems to play a huge role in influencing women of all ages; from adolescence and teens, to women in their twenties and thirties, as well as

Today, women still feel pressured to be thin but also curvaceous. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Lopez and the OG Marilyn Monroe are women that are idealized for their thin, hourglass figure. Women who don’t naturally have this figure are now achieving this look in other ways that can manipulate their bodies. In order to achieve a curvy, hourglass figure, women have turned to plastic surgery, diets, and waist trainers. Ladies are so constrained to resemble the perfect lady that they will do whatever it takes to accomplish a trendy look, yet have they gone too far? Brooke Erin Duffy, an

In this report, to understand what attractiveness is, you need to know what exactly is a face. A face is the central focus of the body that plays an important role in social interactions, showing emotion, and judgment in others. Sir Francis Galton was one of the first scientists to ask the question “what is a face?” and made these composite images of faces. This question leads to him creating the technique called “composite portraiture” in the 1880’s. Composite portraitures are photographs that are generated from different faces to create averageness. He first created these photographic composite images of the faces of vegetarians and criminals to test if there was a typical facial appearance for each. He created these composite images of the

A female should not feel insecure with her body when she is comfortable in her own skin, whether or not she weights 130 pounds or 150 pounds at 5’5”. According to Rehab’s study of the evolution of the female figure over one hundred years, “the body shapes of the most admired models have remained consistently slimmer than that of the average American woman.” Due to the significant increase in mass media throughout the twentieth century of the United States, there has been a noteworthy impact on the popular image of women. A woman being dissatisfied with their body is a everyday trend around the world where as

When the golden rule is applied to faces, beauty mostly depends on how proportioned and spaced facial features are on the face. Individual attractiveness is optimized when the face’s vertical distance between the eyes and the mouth is approximately 36% of its length, and the horizontal distance between the eyes is approximately 46% of the face’s width. The distance between the hairline and the chin is the length ratio, while the distance between the pupils of one’s eyes is the width ratio (Prokopakis 2013). In an experiment previously done, they tested the prediction that facial symmetry can be attractive by manipulating the symmetry of

Literature on the topic of attractiveness is very extensive. The human face is something that catches every ones attention and more over the scientists as well the psychologists are interested in analyzing the ability of humans to extract information of the others. Several factors and features are associated with attractiveness. Some examples include facial symmetry, skin color, facial traits, clear skin and health of facial skin. It is hypothesized that facial symmetry is an important factors in measuring physical attractiveness. Different features may be perceived as attractive by different people.

Garner and colleagues also noted a trend toward noncurvaceousness from 1960 to 1979. The bust and hip measurements of Playboy models decreased and their waist measurements increased significantly. These findings are consistent with those reported by Silverstein, Perdue, Peterson, and Kelly (1986) who examined the curvaceousness of models appearing in Vogue and Ladies Home Journal from 1901 to 1981 and of popular movie actresses from 1941 to 1979. The investigators found that among the models appearing in Ladies Home Journal and Vogue, the bust-to-waist ratio dropped significantly.

What is beauty? How do we decide who is attractive and who is not? Society is full of information telling us what is beautiful, but what fact is that information based on? The topic of beauty has been studied, analyzed and controversial for centuries. We all know the feeling you can have when you hear a beautiful song that brings joy to your heart, stand in a field of flowers that excites your eyes, or admire a face that is visually pleasing. As human beings, we are all drawn to beauty, but what is it that makes something beautiful? The controversial issue that surrounds beauty is that some believe that true beauty is defined by someone’s outer appearance, while others believe it is something that is experienced through a person’s