The Joys of Mediocrity
"Why do I look fat?"
"Why is the shape of my face not proportional to my body?"
"Why do I have so many pimples?"
"Why is my nose that big?"
You and I have, at some point, grumbled like this -- it could have happened last month, last week, or even just five minutes ago! We never forgave ourselves for those flaws in our physical structure called imperfections.
Most of us strive to become the person of what fashion magazines, movies, or pop culture in general proclaim as the "ideal physique of man." The beau ideal meant good looks, prominence of height, well-toned bodies, and the like. Lacking in one or more of these qualities suggests that you aren't qualified to be with the elite who dominate the world because 'the world' considers them elegant and glamorous -- simply, they are 'perfect.' So we do what we can to prove them wrong. It's easy to see because it's everywhere around us. Ladies copy the latest fashion trend, while men attempt to look and act what they think is the 'in' thing. And there's always the beauty products and modern technology to work everything else out. No, nothing wrong with doing these -- every person has the right to do so. The question is "For what real purpose is it about?" Has society been so judgmental, so vainglorious that it casts its eyes down to anyone who doesn't meet their expectations? Do we have to punish ourselves-by not valuing time, money, and self-worth-for something only temporary?
Imperfection is normal. No one escapes it-not even the most well-bred. We are only human. Or in a more philosophical sense perhaps we were meant to be created this way, to counterbalance what we have and what we don't have.
When you closely look at it, imperfection is not such a big deal. It's what that's in you that truly counts. Does perfection even exist? Most of the greatest people that ever lived were recognized for their remarkable achievements, not for how they look like. And besides, if all in this world were perfect, nothing will be regarded with appreciation anymore. A flaw actually makes an object look more appealing and precious, because you see the finer features beneath.
Beauty is a cruel mistress. Every day, Americans are bombarded by images of flawless women with perfect hair and smooth skin, tiny waists and generous busts. They are presented to us draped in designer clothing, looking sultry or perky or anywhere in between. And although the picture itself is alluring, the reality behind the visage is much more sinister. They are representations of beauty ideals, sirens that silently screech “this is what a woman is supposed to look like!” Through means of media distribution and physical alteration, technology has created unrealistic beauty ideals, resulting in distorted female body images.
Society longs for a perfect model to show how humanity should be. Throughout history, perfection has been looked for in gods and other-worldly beings, yet never in humans. Perhaps this is because perfection is subjective and unattainable. Each person can have their own idea of what makes someone perfect, which can make the most ideal person, imperfect. One simple flaw can be seen as imperfect. Despite that, with the advancement of technology and media, people try to become perfect through surgeries and other, more damaging, processes. In “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a scientist believes that the removal of his wife’s birthmark can make her perfect, or rather, his idea of perfect. Hawthorne uses symbolism, foreshadowing, and dark romantic ideals to say that while attempting to be perfect, you can be hurting yourself or others.
People are always complaining about how they aren’t as pretty as models on billboards, or how they aren’t as thin as that other girl. Why do we do this to ourselves? It’s benefitting absolutely nobody and it just makes us feel bad about ourselves. The answer is because society has engraved in our minds that we need to be someone we’re not in order to look beautiful.
As human beings, we are NOT perfect! It is part of our nature to be
Companies say they empower their employees and communities to do more or be better. What does that truly mean? According to The World Bank (2015), “Empowerment is the process of increasing the capacity of individuals or groups to make choices and to transform those choices into desired actions and outcomes” (para 1). Lowe’s introduced a program in 2014 to develop its women leaders, pairing vice presidents with women store managers to develop and expand Lowe’s leadership team. In 2015, the company will leverage the program with a new group of store managers and launch a new mentoring program to pair women and minority store managers with market directors
It seems if a woman does not follow what the television or magazines do, they will be considered a ‘disgrace’ to society. “By the 1930’s, mass advertisements on radio and in magazines persuaded women to purchase cosmetic products by appealing to her fear of growing old or being rejected by social acquaintances,” (Gourley 56). The beauty industry specifically targeted women, using the ideas of an often highly feminine related idea of vanity. This also talked about women’s apparel in clothing and how they weren’t able to dress casually since they would be titled, slob. As looks represent a lot in a woman, the body type of a woman has always struggled with maintaining since the ‘perfect’ body types are not what everyone has. “In the 1890’s women had full bosoms, round hips. In actual measurements they were probably no rounder than Miss Cox but they seemed so because they were shorter, tightened their waists into an hour-glass effect … Now, though, the ideal figure must have a round, high bosom, a slim but not wasp-like waist, and gently rounded hips” (“This is What…”). Ideals women that society has pushed onto women to be for them to have any chance in romance. Though many women can drift away from this the women, though they won’t admit to it, had struggled to meet the ‘set standard’ for women. This shows how after women have gained the rights of voting, gender roles
In social work there are many theories that are very beneficial. I think that empowerment theories are something you must know about. First, I will list some reasons why these theories are special. Then, we will explore the history of it. Thirdly, the key concepts will give us an open insight on what we are really talking about. Fourthly, we will focus on the term critical consciousness. Next is defining the empowerment concepts in a social context. Finally there will be information on the social work empowerment theories more in depth.
Being beautiful, being perfect, is what most of society cares about in this day and age. For example, people value getting rid of any to all imperfections, like having a bit of baby fat, or getting rid of scars. People are put down by the comments of strangers, and more so the comments made from people of their inner circle. People feel ugly and hate themselves for things that they have no control over. Some do radical things to get rid of these imperfections by getting surgery or taking pills. Even though not all people judge minor blemishes the view of one’s self is the most important view a person could have, and if that identity is under attack it could ruin a person 's self confidence. The story “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne also has aspects of self-confidence and identity that are relevant to the current times.
Discrimination laws exist to prevent discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, physical disability, and age by employers. The main discriminatory practices identified today are bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, compensation, and various types of harassment. The following paragraphs outline the most common anti-discrimination laws today. (allbusiness.com, 2006)
The number of times per day that comments are made about how people wish they looked a different way, even just around my school, is outrageous. In places including schools, the workplace, the household, and many more, people are constantly wishing they had what others around them have. They never stop to recognize and appreciate who they are or realize that they are that way for a reason. I wish everyone could realize that perfection is a hoax brought to us by the media to promote products and, for the long term, low self-esteem. There is certainly beauty in every single human being, no matter what they look like. All shapes, forms, sizes, and colors are equally beautiful, and if someone fails to see that, then they are missing the true meaning of beauty - loving oneself and not judging others based on looks. Everyone is unique and the people in this society need to stop wishing that they looked like other people, especially the models in photo shopped images, because it simply cannot be
The advertisements, the movies, the television and the music industry should also take the blame for this. Wherever you go you’ll find advertisements, whether it’s commercials or print ads. In these advertisements, they advertise their products and the promises never stops. These products will “apparently” make you appear like a perfect model with “perfect” long hair, smooth skin, white teeth, “delightful” lips and a “wonderful” face. Similarly to the media, advertisements spreads false hope that makes the people think that if they buy the same makeup as Megan Fox or Jessica Alba they will be as “beautiful”. From what I know of advertisements, that can’t be true when it’s publicly known that the most of the advertisement images are photoshopped or edited. Women but also men will never be good enough in the eyes of the media and the advertisements. Have you ever seen a woman who has some “excess weight” in an underwear commercial? Just think about it for a moment. My answer is no, and probably yours too. The same goes for
Negative body image is something I’ve been battling constantly for many years of my life. We all have our quirks and imperfections, our freckles and our scars. Instead of being taught to cover up and change ourselves, we should be taught to embrace these so-called flaws. I love people because of their uniqueness.
Most people have indulged in the perfect wine, made love to the perfect person while possibly wearing the perfect outfit. Or have they? Is there a such thing as perfection, if so can we attain it? No. Nothing in this world is perfect because it is impossible to create perfection. According to Plato's Theory of Forms, perfection cannot exist in the physical world but only the realm of the philosophers; the ones who choose to lurk deeper in the veiled mysteries of metaphysics.
The beauty standard will always be around unless we do something to change that. But every person will always have that double personality. One side might even show up more and take over their life. Just remember that you are perfect the way you area and that things will slowly but surely get better.
Beauty is defined as “the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit.” The secret of beauty has been a quest of humans for centuries. It has been determined that women and some men spend up to one-third of their income on products and procedures that enhance their looks. We spend way too much time looking in the mirror, scrutinizing, worrying, fretting, and wishing we could change something about ourselves. We dream of looking like the girl at work because she has great hair, or the girl we met at a party because she was skinny, with the perfect nose. This happens because we are constantly being bombarded with messages from social media. We look at magazines that show us airbrushed models and TV shows that consist of actors that spend hours in hair and makeup. Daily we see ad campaigns for stores that feature women whose looks are unattainable. Do we put ourselves through the torture because we think outer ...