DIGITAL BEAUTY: IN LOVE WITH THE PERCEPTION OF BEAUTY
Part II
BLOG POST EIGHTEEN“As the natural beauty is washed away, they paint a coveted hourglass figure of a woman.”
“If it were up to me, I wouldn’t want you to change anything about your appearance,” Liam said.
It was the first time his voice did not carry the same gentle effect it did when he approached me on campus. I couldn’t bare to witness the disappointment in his eyes as the harshness of the reality of those words sank deeper into my heart. As much as I tried to convince myself to not go through with this procedure, there were no amount of words that could explain the cruel reality of looking through a catalog of society’s beautiful women and not being able to walk away from the magnetic force of dissatisfaction with my appearance. As much as I believed in his words I could never escape the hollowness I’ve always felt inside knowing that my features will always be under scrutiny if I do not undergo this surgical procedure. The Liam that I love would never be able to understand my constant need to escape a barrage of images that depicts the beauty as these skinny waistlines, thin waist, wide hips, and protruding buttocks. His perception of beauty wasn’t anchored on a pendulum that swung backward and forwards with the surge of new trends. His views on beauty weren’t tainted by the societal pressure of an artificial perfection that can only be obtained through cosmetic procedures yet the shame festering inside of knowing that I’ll never be able to compare if I fail to conform and become a spectacle to the lab. I know that extracting my natural features is not the answer but that’s the only action that can satisfy the burning desire to take on an artificial form of beauty to be accepted.
PREVIOUS BLOGS
“Don’t let the lack of representation cause you to internalize harsh attitudes towards your features.”
Though the love and attraction that Liam shared for Jolie weren’t influenced by the advertisements on social media, movies, commercials, or celebrities, it wasn’t sufficient to replace Jolie's dissatisfaction with her features. Unfortunately, Jolie failed to realize that the climate of beauty patterns shifts in a society that has to constantly rinse its beauty palette with a washcloth. An organization that has seamlessly penetrated social networks through the likes of digital images has now become warped mirrors that have obscured the female's natural beauty. The fueling of body modification surgeries has used physical attributes to embody and emulate new beauty ideals that are unrealistic. Everywhere she went she saw artificial imprints as the standard of beauty morphed into an hourglass waistline. The hair, the makeup, and the figure become unattainable as time ages. The stamina to compete lessens as your priorities shifts.
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“BOOM! BOOM! Like a scene on a movie screen, it all happened so fast! She was returning to the taxi when the gang violence erupted like wildfire. Like a marching band on a holiday parade, gunshots tore through the streets searching for victims…”