The Importance Of Human Beauty

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

As I was reading The Beauty Bias, by Deborah L. Rhodes, I came across a statistic that perplexed me, saying the total “annual global investment in grooming” comes to $115 billion (Rhodes, pg. 32). This shocking fact provokes a worrisome question: Why do we, humans, spend so much time, money, and thought on our appearance? As a complex question, there are several equally complex answers. However, the simple answer is that everyone else invests their time and thought into your outer shell, eliciting effort from you to improve what they study - your external image. The concern placed on one’s fashion choice or natural features by society takes away from larger, more pressing issues such as the declining economy, or feeding third-world countries.

This essay is for women who believe their thighs are too big, their breasts are too small, their hair is boring, their skin is flawed, their body is shaped funny, or their clothes are outdated. This month's column is for women who believe their life would improve if they could lose 15 pounds; if they could afford contact lenses, that new perfume or anti-cellulite concoction; if they got a nose job, a face lift, a tummy tuck, etc. This month's column is for women who feel shame or unhappiness when they ponder some part (or all) of their body. In other words, this month's column is for 99.9% of the women reading it!

Feeling beautiful deals with many factors but it has become incumbent with focus being placed on the physical aspects of person Una Marson writes about beauty and how it drives many women into changing their features and making those features fit into the standard of beauty. Her poem, “Kinky Haired Blues” speaks about that notion, of women wanting to assimilate to what the norm is. Specifically women of ethnic minorities, she talks more about Black Women and the pressure for them to bleach their skin and to iron their hair. Matters such as race are at forefront of the issues in her society and of the society we currently live in today. Una Marson’s poem “Kinky Hair Blues” speaks to the idea of beauty and the standard of beauty. And how many

Sander’s essay focuses on his childhood when men were working in manual labor jobs for the most part and women largely staying at home. This is not the case in today’s society where women are also expected to get jobs most of the time. In this way, the burden on men to bring in the money has lessoned but women still face the pressure of being beautiful. Tannen exposes this more current set of problems for women when she discusses the expectation that women look “presentable” at work. She writes, “The range of women’s hairstyles is staggering, but a woman whose hair has no particular style is perceived as not caring about how she looks, which can disqualify her for many positions, and will subtly diminish her as a person in the eyes of some.”

Beauty standards are portrayed everywhere: on magazines, social media, ads, commercials, and even flaunted among peers. While the ideals are supposed to promote health awareness, fitness motivation, and self love, it unfortunately results in many unfavorable consequences. Women are constantly “penalized for not being beautiful and at the same time are stigmatized, even pathologized, for not feeling beautiful, for having low self-esteem, for engaging in behaviors like dieting and excessive exercising, or for having eating disorders” (Johnston and Taylor 954). Beauty standards are unrealistic and unhealthy to pursue, and misinforms the public on what true beauty is. While not all beauty image ideals promote negative feelings and dissatisfaction, many believe that the negative effects far outweighs any positive effects.

Hair as a symbol of virility for men and attractiveness for women is found in widely separated cultures throughout the ages and in all parts of the world. It is surprising to find such a difference of meaning between women and

The concept of beauty is an integral part of human nature. For centuries men and women have designated a part of each day dedicating their time to their physical appearance. In many cultures beauty is made a priority of life. This is reflective of the expectations the media places on men and women to have a certain look. What most do not realize is beauty is not just defined by the aesthetic pleasure of faces, hair, bodies, and clothes, it is driven by many other factors. The concept of beauty does not have to be tied down to the strict definition of what is visually attractive, and should rather focus on many different aspects of the person as a whole to create a definition of their beauty. There are many factors that contribute to what makes something or in the case of this research, someone “beautiful”. The explanation for the perception of beauty in one’s self and in others is due in part to a biological, a psychological, and a cultural basis working hand in hand to create what humans believe to be beauty.

It 's not a mystery that society 's ideals of beauty have a drastic and frightening effect on women. Popular culture frequently tells society, what is supposed to recognize and accept as beauty, and even though beauty is a concept that differs on all cultures and modifies over time, society continues to set great importance on what beautiful means and the significance of achieving it; consequently, most women aspire to achieve beauty, occasionally without measuring the consequences on their emotional or physical being. Unrealistic beauty standards are causing tremendous damage to society, a growing crisis where popular culture conveys the message that external beauty is the most significant characteristic women can have. The approval of prototypes where women are presented as a beautiful object or the winner of a beauty contest by evaluating mostly their physical attractiveness creates a faulty society, causing numerous negative effects; however, some of the most apparent consequences young and adult women encounter by beauty standards, can manifest as body dissatisfaction, eating disorders that put women’s life in danger, professional disadvantage, and economic difficulty.

Unrealistic body ideals lead women to feel inadequate because of how their own beauty falls short in comparison to beauty ideals. The believed result of this is women continuous efforts in trying to change their appearance to go along with beauty standards but this is not the case for something as relevant as hair styling. In

Hairstyles often act as ways to identify cultures since they are both public (visible to others) and personal (linked to the body biologically, personally molded to suit cultural and personal preferences) – women’s hairstyles can be central to their social positions (Synnott 1987). Hair can act as both a symbol of self and group identity as well as a form of self expression and communication. I was recently listening to India Arie’s “I Am Not My Hair” and it reminded me of several occasions where those around me in addition to my self have had our self confidence shaken due to the importance that our society puts on a woman’s hair.

Beauty standards have been a major issue for many years now and women have been willing to change their bodies over and over to please themselves and others. Beauty standards are often defined in terms of hairstyles, skin color, and body size. The measures involved in having to live up to these standards are often risky in nature. For decades, what is seen as beautiful is centered around a women’s weight and size. Today, that standard is often defined as being thin. Women often resort to drastic means to attain that ideal image. However, achieving these standards can be expensive, can lower self-esteem and can be a threat to a woman’s health and life.

“Your total comes to 8 billion dollars.” This is the amount of money Americans spend each year on cosmetics according to WorldWatch.org. Americans are willing to pay anything to look and feel beautiful. Most people do not even think twice before buying a product or service that will benefit their beauty. Why are americans so obsessed with trying to feel beautiful? It is as if they were born this way, and they have no other choice but to strive to be beautiful. Reasons why this may be so is because of how americans are brought up and raised. Obsession with beauty starts at childhood, develops into adulthood, and continues until the day they die.

How we interpret beauty is because of many different things. Social media, celebrities, the internet, and models are some of the biggest ones. We see all these fit and beautiful people posting on social media or internet, or posing in a magazine. Advertising beauty is everywhere. On our phones, billboards, television, and on commercials. There are also personal things that contribute to our idea of beauty. Our family members, our culture, and us, individuals.

Apart from appeasing her emotional state of mind, physical appearance also plays an important role in the world of attraction. While it's not necessary that looks is a deciding factor in whether a woman is attracted to you, the way you carry yourself is extremely important. A clean look and good fashion sense may not determine if you are a good fit, but at least it won’t disqualify you in round one. You only got fifteen seconds to make an impression and help her decide whether you are a no, or a “Maybe. First, let’s find out what comes out of his mouth.” You don’t want your outer appearance to be the determining factor for her disqualifying you as a potential mate. Women are keen on fashion, grooming, hygiene, and especially the shoes you’re wearing. Don’t ask me why, they have a habit of paying close attention to footwear. Ask a female friend to take you out shopping, they won’t steer you wrong, unless she likes you and secretly want you to herself. She may pick out some jumbo clown shoes knowing you are going to get turned down. However, mostly, women love to help men look their best! Turn a date into a shopping spree and you may just get rewarded in the dressing room as she is tucking your shirt in or taking it off!