1. DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF BEAUTY IN SOCIETY Megan Stratus

2. ABSTRACT AND THESIS The discussion of the beauty ideal varies amongst culture, centuries, social classes, and even racism. It is inevitable that failure and disappoint will arise due to the fluctuating idea of body image. Very few are able to obtain, but many strive for what they think beauty is. The results of this strive for such an image puts a strain on women ranging from: physical pain, health problems, medical procedures, high costs, time consumption, and damaging psychological effects. The argument of the detrimental consequences to attain the ideal body image is announced throughout with examples from: social acceptance, job requirements, promotional ideas with beauty, and so on. Many feel it’s not a problem to keep changing the ideal, that it keeps women strong. However, women should become more aware of the consequences that are being placed in front of them with the constant changing of beauty standards.

3. INTRO The feminist movement of 1970 created the image that women were strong and powerful on their own. However, there is one detail that we add to our lives to keep our femininity strong and that is beauty. Beauty is not measured; it is the result of judgments of society. Society detrimentally affects the female gender by provoking women to unnecessarily succumb to the desire of achieving a flawless body. After all the troubles of reaching personal freedoms and economic rights not dreamed of our own great grandmothers, we still have a giant emphasis on beauty. This emphasis of beauty may be a way to hold onto a feminine image while shedding the roles of womanliness. When women are asked to define beauty, they mention personal qualities instead of external ones.

4. BODY ALTERATIONS Prehistorically, body alterations with decorating or altering in women were a common thing. The Chinese are believed to have been the first to alter their body from their natural state. For example, the more tightly bound the feet, the more petite they became, which in turn, became more attractive amongst the men of the society

5. BODY ALTERATIONS Throughout the sixteenth century, European women began to use whalebone and hardened canvases to bind themselves into corsets. The garment made it almost physically impossible to bend at the waist and created difficulty to breath. This was to make an emphasis on a tiny waist line and the breasts to peek over the top of the corsets. Their waists could go as little as 13”. By the mid- seventeenth century, corsets were still popular with amplified breasts, hips, and buttocks

6. BODY ALTERATIONS Within the twentieth century, American women began to struggle with the changes of the ideal female body with the dramatic changes that kept occurring. The new ideal was for women to have slender legs and hips, small breasts, and a new hairstyle that became very popular known as “The Bob”. Also bras were made to hide their breasts once more so they could have a young and boy-like appearance. Later in the 1940’s-50’s the ideal changed once more and a women known as Marilyn Monroe was the face of this era. The hour glass shape was once again returned to the beauty world. As for Marilyn, she was “voluptuous and fleshy yet naïve and childlike at the same time”

7. KEEPING UP… During the 1960’s, women relentlessly tried to keep a youthful, lean body with long straight hair. Even pregnant women dieted in response to the orders of their doctors to “not gain more than twenty pounds”, advice later physicians rejected as unsafe. As the 1970’s ruled in, the image was a more athleticism view. Women were to have that toned, slimmed body, but still keep their breast as an erotic image. The demands of the body ideal have created immense stress and has resulted women to look negatively at their bodies. Around the 1990’s, small breasts were looked upon as a “disease” which resulted into implants. The women who were willing to undergo implants and accepted all the health risks are not far from the many women who bounded their feet and breasts in the past. Each beauty ideal era changes too rapidly and quickly for women to relax and look at the positives of their body images instead of the negatives.

8. PHYSICAL PAIN Tattooing and piercings have had issues with unsanitary instruments causing serious infections that could lead to fatality. There are now beauty related problems that have come about over the years to obtain a small figure such as anorexia and bulimia which can lead to starvation, and acid burns from regurgitating too much. Anorexia and Bulimia is becoming a huge epidemic to women. Approximately one million Americans suffer from anorexia, 95 percent are of women Plastic surgery has become quite popular amongst women now but the tool it leaves on people is horrendous like: hemorrhaging, scars and nerve damage. Silicone implants have resulted in breast cancer, autoimmune disease, and even the formation of thick scar tissue.

9. PSYCHOLOGICAL PAIN The pursuit to find the perfect female body has created psychological effects that include: depression, confusion, misery and even insecurity. Adolescent girls are very common to be dissatisfied with their body image as well as older women who have the mind-set to prevent the development of aging.

10. ECONOMICS Prices will continue to rise as each product becomes popular. More businesses for plastic surgeries will begin to flourish as we continue to advertise among television, broadcasts and the internet. As our technology advances we can do almost anything to our bodies. Women can reduce, reconstruct, or even enhance anything on our bodies. Women all want that expensive clothing that creates a wealthier look as well as slimmed down, clean appearance. The beauty economics will continue to flourish as the beauty ideal changes time and time again.

11. SOCIETY It’s clearly reflected that racism, class, and rejection of the disabled play a significant role in beauty ideals. Racism has cause thousands of young African American women to succumb to facial surgeries for feeling guilty about their race and appearance. Asian Americans have dealt with this shame as well so they resort to facial reconstruction and lots of cosmetics.. Beauty norms that are created limit the opportunities of women in classes who can’t and won’t meet the ideal. Unattractive women are more likely to be punished in society and less often to find that “social partners”. The failure to meet the beauty ideals can often lead to consequences throughout the society.

12. CONCLUSION As a result of all these consequences, due to the beauty ideal, Women unnecessarily go to extreme measures to meet each beauty ideal that is presented in each time period as a new one emerges. Society is a main factor that detrimentally affects the female gender by provoking women to unnecessarily succumb to the desire of achieving a flawless body. Beauty industries like the advertisements, media, magazines, etc. will continue to grow rapidly with the changing stages of beauty. Beauty will always be a far reach unless you learn to be satisfied with not only your body but who you are in general. The effects that beauty brings ranges from emotional, physical, and psychological. Society plays a huge part to learning who you are. We strive on being socially accepted. We go through what we can so we meet the norms of our society.