American social consideration on external vs internal characteristics American culture has become troubled in deciding what characteristics make a person beautiful and how that correlates to how people treat them. Is it the external features, such as a person’s hair, eyes, complexion, or how someone dresses? Is it about internal qualities, such as intelligence, loyalty, or patience. Is it about more personal aspects such as person’s race, gender, abilities or sexual orientation? Is it a mixture of all these things or none at all? It also comes into consideration about what qualities weigh more heavily than others. Is there some type of grading system that society uses today that decides who is better than someone based on these qualities or has society become nonjudgmental to these things? A good reference to this topic is Jane Martin’s play Beauty. The play makes the reader question if external or internal qualities make you beautiful. Martin utilizes two characters that have two different types of beauty, physical appearance and intelligence, but hate the type of beauty they are given because they believe America views the other as better to have. The play reaches an emotional level when the reader realizes that one of the characters, Bethany, will use her last wish to become what she believes is beautiful. The girls both explain how their own qualities affect their lives negatively and how they think each other’s qualities would benefit them if they had them. Bethany
As of recently, the media has been flooded with positive interpretations of beauty standards all over the world. According to various sources, beauty ideals, in women especially, are socially constructed in order to judge a person’s value based on physical attractiveness; therefore, it is highly encouraged that people pay attention to their looks and take care of themselves, in order for others to create a positive first impression of one’s character. It is no secret that beauty standards vary from one culture to the next and it is difficult to establish a universal principle of what is considered beautiful. Many countries’ ideals contrast one another and, as a result, allow for stereotypes to emerge. This is the case between American
“You will never look like the girl in the magazine. The girl in the magazine doesn’t even look like the girl in the magazine” Jessimae Peluso. Throughout American history, women have continued to strive for an ideal of beauty. Although the definition of beauty has varied between generations, the pressure and desire to fit the mold of what society deems “beautiful” remains consistent among women from all eras. Unfortunately, this abnormal example seen in magazines, on runways, and in social media platforms is impossible for the majority of the female population to physically reach. Women are always pursuing the perfect look, turning to plastic surgeries transform them into celebrity ideals. People who desire perfect appearance ignore the nature of beauty itself, naturality is a kind of beauty. In recent years, women in America turned to look at models to find the ideal beauty standard and if they don’t meet them they turn to face lifts and plastic surgery to perfect their appearance.
What really determines something to be beautiful. In Lucy Grealy’s narrative, “Mirrors”, she describes her journey of finding her own idea of beauty. As a child she had cancer in her face so she had surgery to remove but it caused her face to be deformed. Consequently, she was bullied because of the way she looked, which caused her self esteem to lower immensely. As a result, she had undergone many surgeries and even went as far as to travel to another country to try and fix her face. Therefore, as she gets older she not only alters herself physically but mentally. She finally realizes that how people see us should not influence how we view ourselves not only physically but mentally as well. So she decides to never look at a mirror because she feels she does not have to to know what she looks like anymore. She finally accepted the way she looks and started focussing on her personal well being and recognizes that's what is actually important. Society has a critical impact on the way we see ourselves because of the way social media shows us that we should look a certain way, people telling us we should look a certain way, your negative thoughts about how you look, and how society determines your value based on looks.
What makes someone beautiful? This striking question has always had a complex answer rather than simple. Society makes their interpretation of beauty with many standards that qualify for the “most beautiful people” in the world. America's picture of the perfect lady is extremely thin however full figured. America’s picture of the perfect gentleman is also thin, yet very fit. It’s always one thing or the other, never one choice. The public has their own particular rendition of what beauty looks like, yet american beauty happens to have a stance amongst the most startling standards. These standards of beauty that women see each day impact their confidence and self-esteem negatively only to push them to discover ways to fit into these unrealistic beauty criterias. Beauty standards in America are ever-changing, but society has yet to absolutely accept the average, everyday woman.
People have contributed to the physical and cultural view of beauty in societies all around the world. Each country has different beauty standards that reflect off of each other to display diversity: “Beauty is informed by values, culture, religion, background and societal influence. Concepts of beauty has change over time depending on environment, culture, etc”. Through the different standards of other cultures, societies are able to learn that there is not only one form of beauty. The evolution of beauty around the world allows people to compare opinions with another to form individual perspectives of beauty.
Mapping a Conversation on the Standardization of Beauty Many people in this world have their own definition of what beauty is. Beauty can come from inside or the outside. To me, beauty is not only something that pleases the eyes. Beauty is a quality that pleases or delights the senses or mind from one’s own perspective. Unfortunately, society makes it nearly impossible to see our own beauty.
In U.S., beauty is highly valued. Beauty is constructed, perceived, and regulated through a narrow cultural lens of what is defined as gendered attractiveness (cite the book). The idea of
I have recently been concerned about the prevalence in society of certain stereotypes for girls and women about what it is considered to be beautiful. This idea of beauty is focused more on their appearances than in their inner character. Every girl deserves to feel beautiful because they all are, but how can girls think that they are beautiful if there is always that constant reminder of unattainable, air-brushed perfection presented in the media. Often seen on TV, and various different shows such as Toddlers and Tiaras, Painted Babies and Baby Beauty Pageants, where little girls are being judged by the way they walk, turn, how their makeup and hair is done and what they are wearing, and obviously their beauty. Society has set such high
Spoken wisely by Plato, ¨Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder¨ (Goodreads). In Alice Walker's short story ¨Beauty: When the Other Dancer is the Self,¨ the reader follows a young girl as she struggles to find the meaning of true beauty. As a child, she was always extremely full of herself, begging for attention and, most times, achieving her position in the spotlight. However, when she turns eight, an incident occurs that leaves her questioning if she'll ever be beautiful again. Much like this young girl, I experienced a similar situation that had me questioning my own worth in a world of beautifully powerful people. What such a self-analyzing question can bring to light is the controversy over whether beauty is in relation to appearance or in relation to a person as a whole.
The saying, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” was first heard in the third century by the Greeks. Meaning that the view on one’s perception of beauty could be another one’s ugly, the standards of what is beautiful and what is not could differ from person to person. The media, which consists of highly edited images of men and women, sets unnatural standards for what is considered beautiful and what is ugly. Often illustrating standards impossible to reach, magazines teach boys and girls that if you are not a certain size in clothes, a certain height, or a certain weight, you are ugly. In the media, they never report the beauty of someone based off of their personality; however, there are always stories about models losing weight, or how great a celebrity looks after plastic surgery. Ultimately, the perception on what is ugly and what is beautiful is highly influenced by the
Confidence and intelligence is another aspect of beauty. People who enjoy their job and surroundings radiate this needed confidence and intellectual being within themselves that others notice instantly. One show’s true beauty through acts of kindness, loyalty, and ambition to strive for the greater good, such as encouraging a friend, being faithful, and working hard toward a goal One can look at a person and see the inner beauty of a not so appealing physique, and alter their appearance fully due to his/her ‘good’ character radiating out. A person can be beautiful in looks but have a negative attitude. When people notice the negativity, they become less appealing not only in the eyes of those close by but by others as
What is considered beautiful? In different parts of the world, beauty comes in many shapes and forms. In America however, beauty is often portrayed as having long silky hair, slightly tan skin, a button nose, big lucious lips, and light colored eyes. This decription usually pops into someone's mind when they think of American beauty. Some might say, thats what a real American girl should look like. Throughout the decades, beauty and fashion have been constantly evolving. Society is always showcasing whats hot and new. But one main "trend" that has never gone out of style, is being white. In the book, "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison, we witness a negative effect that beauty can bring. "The Gift of the Dolls" is an expert from the novel, here Toni Morrison displays the racial injustice,
The main reason the word beauty has been used to describe external features rather than internal ones, so much more in the recent years, is the media. The media has evolved into something extremely influential, and the most clear message people recive from this, is what they are supposed to look like. For instance, magazines often create young girls who believe that thin as paper models seen in any magazine are what they are supposed to look like. Also, another component adding to the superficial terms people have are the celebrities that we idolize who are coached to not have even one single hair out of place; all those celebrity’s with perfect skin, hair, and body have been accomplices in the media’s outrageous spread shallow opinions. The outcome of the media’s bar being set so high is people all around doing whatever necessary to preserve their physical appearance regardless of the effect it has on their health or bank accounts.
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
This discussion is about the similarities and differences between external and internal beauty. For intent purposes, it would be easiest to argue this subject using the physical human senses and cognitive learning. External beauty is a visual perception while internal beauty is concept of a person’s character even though both are learned from the physical senses and cognitive learning. It is very, very rare that we have both external and internal beauty in the same body because the body is imperfect.