Thanks to the transparency of social media, it’s easy to see the growing obsession with beauty in our culture. A casual scroll through Tiktok or Instagram reveals not only tons of filtered and edited photos and videos, but also casual routines such as “slugging” by people eager to share the before and after of current beauty trends. May contain authored content. For more extreme measures such as laser facials and plastic surgery.
The latter has seen a recent surge in popularity, with plastic surgeons reporting performing 600 more surgeries in 2021 than they did in 2020, a 40% increase. The most popular are “non-invasive” procedures, namely Botox and facial fillers. From 2000 to 2020, his annual number of Botox injections increased by nearly 459%. This, along with lip and facial fillers, is now the norm for women of a certain age. The assumption is that once the paper is creased, it cannot be unrolled.
not your mother’s plastic surgery
In general, if something makes a woman happy or gives her confidence, she should do it. It is advice that makes no distinction between buying a new lipstick and undergoing elective surgery. This assumption is based on the feminist sentiment that judging a woman’s individual choices amounts to internalized misogyny. Criticizing the evaluation of appearance is just another form of sexism. After all, historically, a woman’s appearance has been her one of the greatest tools in the arsenal and her one of the only paths to agency and power in the world of men. Today, despite dramatic improvements in equality, women are hesitant to part with their precious asset of beauty. This seems like a no-brainer given the myriad of petty injustices and the burdens women still carry.
But criticism of beauty practices cannot be dismissed as more than mere misogyny. We can appreciate the purposes for which female beauty has served our collective past, while also acknowledging its shortcomings. Up, and the ante on hygiene continues to be upped: eyelash extensions, gua sha massage, and a 12-step skin care routine. . There are endless recommendations on how to improve a woman’s appearance. (In the meantime, my husband insists that he only needs to shower every three or four days.) Despite more options in the modern world, women’s appearances are changing more than ever. What conversations do we avoid when we refuse to ask why?
distracted by our appearance
Although cosmetic practices and procedures are not limited, they are marketed primarily to women. Staying fixated on women’s looks has definite patriarchal benefits beyond keeping companies (and their male CEOs) profitable. I can’t help but wonder what more women could have achieved without the time and energy we put into our hair, skin, clothes and bodies.
This is not just a matter of personal choice for each individual woman. Increased cosmetic practices and procedures raise the stakes of other women, especially younger generations. Our individual choices have ripple effects in communities and cultures. We also need to realize that looking good can quickly become an obsession. It’s a disease as dangerous as an eating disorder, and the feeling of “if it’s going to make a woman happy, she should do it” is downright disgusting.
When so many women are put under the knife and needle, young women internalize the belief that change is the norm and necessary and that natural beauty is not enough. Because of how much energy, effort, and money they expend to stay beautiful at home, women’s first and foremost responsibility is to be physically attractive despite their social achievements. As women, how long can we blame society and the beauty industry before taking responsibility for upholding these standards ourselves? We must acknowledge our common duty not to artificially create our own ideal body and face.
No one will come to our rescue because such money is made out of women’s insecurities.These practices and products will continue to be sold as long as there is a market. Nevertheless, we women continue to be victims when it comes to beauty standards, bemoaning these expectations but voluntarily participating in them. However, when it comes to the loss of youth and beauty, we pity and ridicule our own gender.
Perhaps by accepting this fact first for ourselves, we can accept this fact for all women. is just us Perhaps we change the system not by beauty, but by simply being ourselves, by creasing the paper in our faces with stories of laughter and satisfaction crafted with the wisdom of the ages.
