Our Fatal Quest for Beauty

Many little girls have put the Barbie dolls as their role models; this mind set can lead them into being insecure and wanting plastic surgery later on in life. “In August 2012, 14-... ... middle of paper ... ...surgery.about.com/od/beforesurgery/a/Plastic-SurgeryRisks.htm>. Krishman, Manisha. “Where do parents draw the line?” Corrective procedures may boost self esteem but will they end bullying?” Maclean’s. 13 May 2013: P 50-54.

But Barbie dolls are another example of the unattainable beauty image that is being forced on young girls. If Barbie were a real woman, her head would be the same circumference as her waist, so she would only ... ... middle of paper ... ...y aren't,” (Monroe, 2011). Perhaps she was on to something genius. Works Cited Campaign for real beauty mission. (2008, March 14).

On the interactive website, teenage girls were asked to give themselves a makeover using makeup, different hairstyles, and physical attributes. The result was that most girls wanted to look more thin, white, and blond, much like a Barbie doll. This is because media has created an ideal image of what a girl should look like. Teenage girls associate their success and popularity with body weight and beauty. In the public eye tall and skinny models and celebrities are looked highly upon where as overweight actresses and models are ridiculed.

Being one of the most controversial dolls in history, Barbie has broken barriers for women all over the world. Many parents don’t understand the benefits that Barbie provides for young girls. They only look to the negative side of her. Confidence is one of the biggest pros for Barbie. Young girls want to express themselves through fashion and makeup and Barbie is the biggest idol for that specific thing.

One could say the biggest is what the perfect woman should look like. The Barbie doll image seems to be the socially accepted image of the perfect woman. Maybelline’s new ad campaign for its dream liquid mousse allows women to acknowledge that one cannot be beautiful unless they are wearing a Maybelline cosmetic product. The ad also states that if you use this new foundation you will look like you’ve been airbrushed (Maybelline 2012). Most women if not every woman wants to look and feel beautiful and the cosmetic industry has taken advantage of this fact.

“Guillen and Barr's study further indicated that adolescent girls are the primary targets of much of this weight-loss advertising” (Issitt). Sadly, the market has no sympathy for young girls, trying to convince them that they are not as beautiful as they really are. Media hooks the minds of these girls by selling them beauty products to cover up their natura... ... middle of paper ... ...curvy, Latina actress America Ferrera in the role of Betty Suarez” (Chittom and Finley). The show captured a curvy Latina having great accomplishments in the fashion world despite her looks and appearance. By allowing the appearance of curvy woman, others would be able to accept themselves.

The popular toy Barbie has suffered an extreme amount of criticism due to the way in which it portrays the female physique. Barbie is known as a cultural icon in western societies and it has been estimated that 99% of young girls from ages 3- 10 have owned at least one Barbie doll. Fashion model Cindy Jackson, perfectly describes the relationship Barbie dolls have with many other females and has been quoted saying “This is what I want to look like, I think a lot of little 6-year-old girls or younger even now are looking at that doll and thinking I want to be her.” (CITE). The major problem with young girls trying to resemble Barbie’s looks is that because due to her thin stature her body proportions and weight would be physically impossible to exist. Fantasy play with dolls and action figures is a major socialization tool that many young children use.

It talks about women’s magazines and how they include so many adds for weight loss and how many girls own Barbie dolls. The piece also talks about how all of these adds effect people and to what extent they effect people. The author of this piece is the director of Research and Outreach for About- Face and has a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Based on those facts alone I feel that this piece is very credible and contains truthful information. Limitations of this piece include only having one side and not pertaining specifically to ethics in advertising.

What is Beauty? Is it the figure of the woman we see? Why do we think that someone is only beautiful if they have make-up and other false beauty enhancers to make themselves feel more impeccable to others. Dove the company behind all the natural shampoos and gels want to know what people of today think real impeccable beauty is. The Dove self-esteem fun, Beauty, Real Girls, Real Pressure: A national report (June 2008) describes how many girls think they aren't good enough or cute enough that guys won't like them.

Mainly, female beauty pageants have no purpose in society. They put to much emphasis on the “beauty” of the pageant. They belittle the fact that young women are products and not real people with flaws. Teaching the younger female generation that true beauty is within is what our goal in America should be. Works Cited http://chocoholic-naomi.blogspot.com/2011/04/do-beauty-pageants-serve-any-purpose-in.html http://thepageantexpert.com/post/What-Are-The-Benefits-Of-Beauty-Pageants.aspx http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/ramsey/attack_3.html http://bb-articles.com/beauty-pageants-do-they-have-a-place-in-modern-society/