Friday, January 15, 2010
Women's right to choose was not meant to be about Botox
The Guardian: "This lady has a tattoo on her right buttock. That lady's breasts are slightly lopsided. The woman to the left has an ample tummy that jiggles when she bounces. As a quotidian consumer of contemporary culture, I consider myself inured to nudity. But, on a chilly evening earlier this week, before a stage full of naked, whooping strangers, I realised that I don't know women's bodies at all."
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8 comments:
I wonder if we are reaching an extreme of the pendulum swing right now with all the issues around photoshopped advertisements of women as well as the vaginal cosmetic surgery, or if we are just now diving into what's below the tip of the ice burg. This could get far worse with the generation that started getting boob jobs as graduation gifts starting to have their own children. And what kind of example or encouragement are they giving their little girls? Are parents allowed to sign off on a surgery if the child is under 18?
I think the concept of the show mentioned in the beginning of the article is really interesting. It is especially meaningful now, with the way that society views body image. However, I feel that audience members would continue to judge those on stage, just because of what has been ingrained as far as what is "right". There recently have been a lot of attempts to change this notion of beauty, especially by Dove, but I don't believe they have had much impact.
I had not yet heard of Trilogy, but it sounds like it has the right idea. However, I agree with sparker that wudience members will still judge those women on stage, for whatever minute 'flaw' might exist. But even still who is to say it is a flaw? When the author starts to talk about every woman getting plastic surgery, and shunning/guilt tripping those who dont into it, is a bit extreme but honestly one can see how it is not that far off. That being a stepford wife is the ultimate goal and that it must be reached.
I agree that behind all the surgery and botox, there lies a greater problem within society. These woman feel that there are things wrong with them, because society tells them so. However, on one hand it is the women's right to choose. Additionally, the harsh truth is that in order to be successful you need to be pretty. Who are we to say that you shouldn't perpetuate this idea, looking at the actors and MTs in the school of drama, they are all pretty people. The reality of the situation is that it's easier to make a pretty person ugly, than an ugly person pretty. The audience wants to relate to someone who is pretty. If you are pretty, you are more likely to be cast. These women are just going to extreme lengths to get there.
I think that the show is a great idea. I think that all women need to become more comfortable with their bodies, and we all need to realize that the "perfect" bodies we see every day on tv, in magazines, etc. are not actually perfect. They are photoshopped! I feel like women are going to start looking more and more like they are out of The Stepford Wives.
Responding to what Candace asked at the end of her post, parents are allowed to sign off on a surgery if their child is under 18. There are girls who are getting nose jobs as sixteenth birthday gifts! It's crazy!
Although people might still judge the women onstage as sonia and sarah said, I also think that this is a good step in the right direction to getting people comfortable with normal bodies!
I agree with the statements above: while this show is new and shocking, I think it provides a message that needs to be heard now. Throughout our modern world, we are bombarded with the "perfects". The "perfect" form on the front of a magazine. The "perfect" car driving down the street. The "perfect" love on the television. And in out modern world and our strive to achieve perfection, we forget that we are only human. From this article, it appears the show attempts to convey the change of women and thier struggles throughout the centuries. It shows the modern world that you need only be yourself and thats what matters.
I really like the idea of this show. So many women have an extremely narrow idea of what "attractive" means. However, it seems to me that men have two different scales of attractiveness--one for celebrities and one for everyday women. In contrast, many women seem to have just the one scale of attractiveness, and so they believe that if they don't look like Angelina Jolie, then they're ugly. Trilogy sounds like a great wake up call to those women.
I agree with all the opinions above. When i read an article i always like to see what comments were actually posted on the article page. there were a lot of good points. Media image doesn't just affect women. like one of the guys said, Rogain sells more than botox.
I think it is very important that we start to do more to change media's image. like Sarah said some companies like Dove are trying to put a good image out there, but one or two companies aren't enough.
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