The media has had an increasingly destructive effect on young people who are becoming worryingly obsessed with their body image. The media is saturated in sexual imagery in which young people have to face every day. The sheer volume of sexual imagery in the media today has resulted in the vast majority of young people to become hooked on looking as near to perfection everyday by using the latest products and buying the latest fashions. This used to be enough but lately the next step to achieving perfection is cosmetic surgery. Everyone wants to look attractive, especially teenagers who are not only put under massive strain to succeed but to look beautiful and climb the ranks of the social ladder, and it seems that the only way to achieve the much desired beauty is to turn to drastic measures. Cosmetic surgery is essentially not a bad thing. Some people suffer facial and body injuries or are born with a deformity which can only be corrected by plastic surgery. Cosmetic surgery can also be a life saver in cases of extreme obesity. However, some people-especially young females- are becoming too obsessed with their looks and body. The quest of finding the perfect body has led many to the operating table, opting for multiple cosmetic surgeries. It is no surprise that many young females are turning to the knife when they are surrounded by images of young, beautiful models advertising everything from cars to beauty products reminding them every day of what they hate about themselves. Some women’s answer to this is to hide themselves away under baggy clothing but the majority cover themselves in make-up and fake tan and dye their hair to look like their favourite celebrity of the moment. However, recently many more women have tu... ... middle of paper ... ...ally want and it has been carefully thought out but the story doesn’t finish when the procedure does. There could always be complications or you may not achieve the desired result. For example when having breast surgery, the implants will have to be replaced meaning further cost and for the private companies securing patients and money for the future. Works Cited • Essential Articles 10-Body Blues • Essential Articles 9-Little Miss Perfect • About.com-Most Popular Surgeries • NHS Choices-Breast Implants • Media Awareness Network-Beauty, Body Image and the Media • Quote from Robin Gerber, author and motivational speaker • Information from The Wright Stuff-Topical debate show • Associated Content from Yahoo!-Plastic Surgery Addiction • Faze Magazine-Teen Cosmetic Surgery • The Journal-Article on young girls death in Philadelphia
We hear sayings everyday such as “Looks don’t matter; beauty is only skin-deep”, yet we live in a decade that contradicts this very notion. If looks don’t matter, then why are so many women harming themselves because they are not satisfied with how they look? If looks don’t matter, then why is the media using airbrushing to hide any flaws that one has? This is because with the media establishing unattainable standards for body perfection, American Women have taken drastic measures to live up to these impractical societal expectations. “The ‘body image’ construct tends to comprise a mixture of self-perceptions, ideas and feelings about one’s physical attributes. It is linked to self-esteem and to the individual’s emotional stability” (Wykes 2). As portrayed throughout all aspects of our media, whether it is through the television, Internet, or social media, we are exploited to a look that we wish we could have; a toned body, long legs, and nicely delineated six-pack abs. Our society promotes a body image that is “beautiful” and a far cry from the average woman’s size 12, not 2. The effects are overwhelming and we need to make more suitable changes as a way to help women not feel the need to live up to these unrealistic standards that have been self-imposed throughout our society.
According to a college student in Korea: “When you’re nineteen, all the girls get plastic surgery, so if you don’t do it, after a few years, your friends will look better, but you will look like unimproved you.” (Straight Talk). The student might have confusion between cosmetic and plastic surgery, but all its meaning is when reaching enough age, everyone should get cosmetic surgery to improve appearance. The statistics in Medical News Today shows that “approximately 65,000 surgical cosmetic procedures were performed in 2008 in the UK” compares to 2003. It is about 50% more than in 2003. Additionally, the official statistics of cosmetic surgery in the U.S. is far more popular. In 2007, there is total of 1,435,444 of surgical cosmetic procedures which included liposuction, breast augmentation, eyelid surgery, abdominoplast, and female breast reduction. A number of non-surgical cosmetic procedures are higher than surgical cosmetic procedures. The statistic is about 7,113,914 which included botox, hyaluronic acid (hylaform, juvederm, restylane), laser hair removal, microdermabrasion, and laser skin
In conclusion, cosmetic surgery is not a solution to peer pressure, insecurity and bullying , in contrary, it increases depression rate for most people,causes selfdestruction for most cases, and damgages ones selfesteem after idolizing celebrities who have the perfect figure.
In society today, people look at beauty as a tall, skinny model or a tan, muscular man. It has brain washed the world to believe that in order to look beautiful, they must look like the images that are seen in the media. Today’s celebrities who are famous for their appearance also encourage the belief that thin is beautiful. These images are all over the media right now and have been for many years. With all of these images that are seen everywhere, a person feels obligated to look just like the people of Hollywood so they turn to cosmetic and/or weight loss surgery. Although cosmetic surgery can improve one’s self-image, it can also have a lot of disadvantages which can lead to many risks, even death.
First of all, teenagers expect that plastic surgery will improve their self-confidence, but does it? Teenagers think that their new appearance will be great, but they may get different looks from their friends. For example, when they’re talking, their friends may look at their chest instead of looking at their faces and their friends may feel uncomfortable and awkward about their new breasts. One study found that teenager’s body-image may occur in the late teens because their bodies were still changing. The average girl gains weight between the ages of 18 and 21, and that is likely to change her desire or need for breast augmentation. This indicates that many young girls who are very dissatisfied with their appearance will feel more satisfied a few years later, whether or not they undergo surgery.
In conclusion, we must avoid teenagers getting these surgeries and also we must avoid people having psychological problems getting these surgeries. In other situations, plastic surgery’s benefits can be given to the people who want them. For me, I would never want plastic surgery. I would prefer always to improve myself in other ways not surgery.
In conclusion it is possible to see how the media promotes a physical and psychological disease among women through the usage of unrealistic body images as it urges them to change their bodies, buy “enhancing” products, and redefine their opinions. Such statements may appear to be ridiculous, but for young women who are seeking to perfect their body according to how the media portrays “good looks” it is the basis for corruption. Confidence, contentment and healthy living are the keys to a perfect and unique body image and no amount of money can advertise or sell as genuine a treatment as this.
Some people’s obsession with plastic surgery is obviously getting out of control. It starts with only getting one thing fixed or corrected but then quickly escalates and before you know it, a face that once was all-flesh turns into plastic. According to a study conducted by Nigel Mercer (2009), “The number of official cosmetic surgeries has more than tripled to 34,000 since 2003”. The two reasons why plastic surgery should be banned are because of its high health risks, and because of the additional pressure it puts on people to look picture-perfect.
“Individuals are encouraged, even expected to make ‘lifestyle’ choices to maximize their life chance and simultaneously held responsible for managing and minimizing the risk associated with these decisions” (Leve, 2012:124). Media discourse is part of everyone’s day to day life, ideals of bodies are shown in all these media communication’s in order to appeal to the consumer. This could be considered to have made society become obsessed by looks, meaning that individuals feel the pressures to keep up with how people are represented in the media, for example recognized celebrities in magazines. According to The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, or BAAPS, there was a 16.5 percent increase of procedures in 2012. These statistics show that cosmetic surgery is becoming normalized, “This is how we live now. Anything that makes us feel better about our appearance, whether it involves needles, knives or acid, is acceptable’ (Wiseman, 2012)
Researchers have used various abstract foundations for examining the relationship between media and body image ( Holmstrom, 2004). Here I review the theory that has been used by researcher in the area. Bandura’s Social cognitive theory (1994) assumed that “people learn and model the behaviors of attractive others”. The supporters of this theory suggest that young women find slim models in the media attractive and try to imitate them through dieting which leads them to eating disorders.
...hese days and is no longer accessible only to the rich and famous. Any person in the world can have the procedure they want done. Men, women and parents of small children are making the decision things about their bodies and looks each day. Plastic surgery can improve a person’s self esteem or can drastically change the life of a child or adult with deformities. No matter what the reason may be, plastic surgery is not something that is to be entered into lightly. It requires a long thought process, a search for a good and credible practitioner, support from loved ones, possible therapy and of course, a lot of money. The decision to undergo cosmetic or reconstructive surgery is intensely personal. People, for reasons as simple as a crooked nose, to the lessening of a serious scar, to those deformed by birth, accidents or injury have options available to them.
Beauty is an ideological concept that society has implemented throughout the history of the world. There are those who are born with it and others who will risk their life to obtain it through the process of cosmetic surgery. Most who undergo surgical cosmetic procedures are between the ages of 35 to 50 years old. However, in 2016 the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that a total of 299,551 cosmetic procedures were performed in adolescents between the ages of 13 to 19 years old. This is more than 1% of the American population that had a cosmetic surgical procedure performed. Whether it is for self-autonomy, a cognitive condition or an emergency procedure, many of the reasons are discreet. The cosmetic surgical procedures performed
Cosmetic surgery has become a vital component of modern-day society. It’s good has left the apprehensive glistening with confidence and poise. However, like everything else it’s bad has many times over shadowed and been disputed against. Its ability to replace flaws with ideal body features has left numerous patients with an obsession for the quest of perfection. Individuals go to large magnitudes in order to seek this perfection such as spending irrational amounts of money and for those who cannot afford these surgeries, traveling to different countries in order to get surgeries done. These surgeries that have levitated millions of insecurities have many times left the patient mentally unstable with obsession disorders or physically botched if not done correctly or by an unaccredited surgeon.
Cosmetic surgery does not operate under the same distinct goals that regular medical practices operate under: the removal, relief, or curing of maladies. Cosmetic surgery is mainly deemed as a luxury, one that is allotted to those with the means to send money on something that is often deemed purely superficial. These surgeries do not stem from a base of medical necessities however there is a certain level of suffering that can accompany some of the patients want for surgery. The suffering, coming from mostly issues with self image, are directly related to social norms. These social norms are ones constructed by society as a whole based on what they deem as “beautiful”, “expectable”,
Cosmetic surgery is a vile trend throughout the U.S. society. The world has always appreciated beauty, but this is now taking a toll on children who because of their age are unaware of the lasting consequences. While there is no age limit for any conclusive procedure, cosmetic surgery is more glorified to be glamorous than safe, and it is time to stop putting teen´s bodies in danger.