We are exposed to messages about body image, attractiveness, and the ideal body type on a daily basis from a variety of different sources. From commercials, to television programs, to ads in popular magazines, it is nearly impossible to escape the messages conveyed to us regarding what we should strive to look like and what we should consider attractive. Perhaps the most obvious messages of attractiveness come from what we read, see, and absorb in magazines. When waiting in line to pay for my late night coffee run at 7-11, I scanned the magazines lining the shelves under the counter. Cosmopolitan, Elle, and Maxim were prominently displayed. A variety of different gossip magazines were also available for flipping through by the other impatient college students waiting in line in front of me. I picked up the latest issue of Cosmopolitan, my attention captured by the skinny image of The Hills star Lauren Conrad and one particular caption on the front cover reading “Lose Weight While You Eat.”
As I flipped through the magazine, I wasn’t a bit surprised at the various pictures of thin models, celebrities, and women depicted in advertisements. Page after page contained much of the same thing; tall, beautiful, extremely slender women encouraging the way we should dress and the products we should use to look like them. From anti-aging creams, to make-up products, I was bombarded with advertisements not-so-subtly telling me what our society considers beautiful.
With my interest piqued on how magazines influence our cultural values on appearance, I picked up a copy of Maxim magazine to see what messages were being portrayed for men. The magazine featured ads and articles with pictures of toned, muscular men as well as a large amount of young, beautiful, and of course skinny women. I think we more easily realize the unrealistic beauty standards for women, yet fail to see that similar standards are present for men as well.
Popular men’s and women’s magazines send us message not only about how we should look, but how the opposite sex should look as well. Both Maxim and Cosmopolitan contained images of the ideal for both men and women and had articles suggesting how we can go about obtaining these images. The dilemma here is that most people in our society do not fit into these standards of beauty because they are unrealistic and often unattainable. Instead of focusing on how thin or toned we should be, shouldn’t these magazines zero in on being the best you? Or at least a realistic you? The more we continue to buy and read these magazines, the more we absorb their messages for men and women of how we should look. Though at times we may not consciously pick up on these messages, they are being embedded in our minds by the skinny woman selling us lip-gloss on page ten, or the incredibly toned man persuading us to drive a certain type of car on the next page.
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5 comments:
I wholeheartedly agree with you Justine. Last semester for Global Women Writers I actually wrote my research paper on how women around the world are influenced by the Western media and it's depictions of young skinny women, the ideal woman. I definitely feel that sometimes we don't even consciously pick up on the messages the media sends us about what we should appreciate and look like, but we buy products advertised by those people representing the unattainable traits of the perfect man or woman. It's just so unfair to subject everyone to such scrutiny and lower their self esteem because they don't look like the models in the magazine.
Brenda
I agree too. It's almost scary how all of the ads and portrayels of skinny women and beautifying products have come so normal that people don't even look at them as social constructs or messages put out to the public anymore. Being thin and looking beautiful has been the common theme of magazines and media for so long that anything else seems wrong. I think it's sad that people have not begun to change their views or perceptions of what's beautiful yet.
I have to agree as well. Society is constantly forcing individuals into believing and conforming to what is considered "normal", in this instance it just happens to be beauty. As a result of society and the media, we have predetermined images of what is considered to be a beautiful man or woman. Furthermore, I would bet that if 100 man and 100 women were asked to identify a male and a female that would fit the description of beautiful, over 85% would recite individuals that we often see in the various types of popular magazines mentioned.
I did a project on this as well. I think that often we do not realize how much we actually absorb from magazines and advertisements. I think that these messages may not seem obvious, but the constant exposure to the "ideal" body type sinks in eventually. There really is no escaping these media messages as to how we should look.
I completely agree with this post. Society and the media have always displayed women in magazines that are skinny and tall and have the perfect features. It is almost scary that people read magazines and completely forget that these pictures represent the stereotype of women needing to be thin and perfect in every way.
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