A while ago I had watched this documentary called "America the Beautiful" which tackled how we view plastic surgery, modeling, and looks today in society. The trailer is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y06bkDVCM6w and the full documentary is actually free on Hulu here: http://www.hulu.com/watch/198883/america-the-beautiful. It is disturbing to see how many people obsess over looks these days and when forced to give a "why" they can't even answer. The young guy in the trailer wants to look for a "slender girl... why I couldn't even tell you why" and needs to get a six pack but doesn't even know what the importance of it is. It's ridiculous that people obsess over airbrushed images and want to attain something that the model doesn't even have. This brings me back to that statue of Wonder Woman we discussed about in class, where the Khunds had to "pretty [her] up a bit." We all thought that the statue was not very attractive, but the Khunds perceived it as attractive and did not appreciate Wonder Woman's slender frame. Are we obsessed with these idealized images simply because the media feeds it to us and we view it as the "norm"? Could we explain WHY something is beautiful, or do we just label it as such?
Saturday, September 17, 2011
America the Beautiful
A while ago I had watched this documentary called "America the Beautiful" which tackled how we view plastic surgery, modeling, and looks today in society. The trailer is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y06bkDVCM6w and the full documentary is actually free on Hulu here: http://www.hulu.com/watch/198883/america-the-beautiful. It is disturbing to see how many people obsess over looks these days and when forced to give a "why" they can't even answer. The young guy in the trailer wants to look for a "slender girl... why I couldn't even tell you why" and needs to get a six pack but doesn't even know what the importance of it is. It's ridiculous that people obsess over airbrushed images and want to attain something that the model doesn't even have. This brings me back to that statue of Wonder Woman we discussed about in class, where the Khunds had to "pretty [her] up a bit." We all thought that the statue was not very attractive, but the Khunds perceived it as attractive and did not appreciate Wonder Woman's slender frame. Are we obsessed with these idealized images simply because the media feeds it to us and we view it as the "norm"? Could we explain WHY something is beautiful, or do we just label it as such?
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Our cultural norms have evolved a lot over the years. In the 1800s, being fat and white was all the rage because it proved that you were powerful and wealthy. Now it's the complete opposite. We need to be skinny and tan to show that you have influence.
ReplyDeleteYou make a very interesting point. These days, it seems like these stereotypes and social "norms" are ingrained in people's minds so early in life that sometimes it is hard to tell where they came from in the first place. TV, movies, magazines, and other forms of mass media start from such an early time to convince society of these "norms" and it's just sad. Something should be done to teach younger children to form their own opinions and be more accepting.
ReplyDeleteI think its interesting that some people focus so much on being thin and perfect as this documentary shows but at the same time america has such an obesity problem. Why do you think we have such extremes in the same culture?
ReplyDeleteNote how this document seems to totally only focus on America's obsession with FEMALE beauty. I watched the preview that you posted with this, and I was totally shocked when the 6' 0" model at 130 pounds was told that she needed to lose 15 pounds. And just after, another girl said something along the lines "If you wanna care about your health, go to college." The worst part about this idea of beauty is the implications that beautiful women must be stupid, and a smart woman is unattractive. It's like people have no common sense and can't grasp the concept that there's virtually no correlation with exterior looks and interior talents.
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