Society’s Obsession with Appearance
One of the biggest problems in modern society is our obsession with our appearance the ensuing consequences. It is a combination of celebrity fascination, the constant supply of images of ‘perfection’ from the mass media, and the pressurized demand of looking attractive in terms of the standards and expectations which are laid down by society at large. The effect of this is an intense pressure placed upon people to look pristine and perfect, as defined by an unreasonable and demanding media. This is particularly noticeable in women with the view being that young girls’ self-esteem begins to deplete from the age of 9 and beyond (Cowlin, 2002, p27). The effects of this are felt in the ever-increasing numbers of young women who suffer from varying levels of mental health problems concerning their appearance: eating disorders and obsessive compulsive conditions are in abundance thanks to the social obsession with our appearance. As a whole, society has become far too fascinated by beauty and the pursuit of perfection and this is having a massively negative effect on our youth.
A central cause to our increased interest in appearance and the desire to achieve these can be largely attributed to the mass media and its relentless presentation of celebrity images. Long gone are the days where curvy women are viewed as being attractive and now, the popular ‘female’ image is the extremely slender body type which should be achieved “at all costs” (Holmes & Redmond, 2007, p282). This view is being felt keenly by young girls and adolescents everywhere who are growing up with a warped perception of what is expected of them. It is rare celebrities such as Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez who both proudly have curvier body types and who, singularly, present a healthier view of body image to their young fans (Holmes & Redmond, 2007, p282).
However, it is clear that this demand on young women is having a severe and dangerous effect (Behar & Schoenhals, 2001, p240). Many suffer from conditions which cause them to obsessively fear becoming overweight and forcing themselves to suffer in the pursuit of the unattainable perfection and it is well chronicled that women are significantly more at risk for falling prey to some such condition than men (Bruhn, 2011, p160). One compulsive condition which specifically discusses the effect of pressured body image is Body Dysmorphia Disorder which sees the sufferer become unable to see themselves for what they truly are and become obsessed with the idea of themselves as being ugly or overweight, for instance (Dougherty & Hudak, 2011, p192). Other conditions include Anorexia and Bulimia which involves the sufferer depriving the body of food in an obsessive attempt to lose weight and become ‘more attractive’ (Bruhn, 2011, p160). It is clear that these conditions are taking more and more prevalence in the lives of modern young people and these terms are regularly used and hold familiarity in schools across the world, sadly.
It is unsurprising that it is women who feel the strain of body image since it is their image which is sexualized by men routinely (Stoppard, 2000, p129). However, it is also associated with the fact that body image is affected by the gender divide since both men and women hold different expectations of themselves and each other (Jackson, 1992, p154). From this view it is clear to see how the pressure is squarely placed on the shoulders of women; traditionally, women are deemed to be the fairer of the two sexes and have been designated as being almost ornamental to the industrious, hardworking men in society. Conversely, it is odd that this has not yet ceased to be the case, however unconsciously, given the rise in feminism and the increased levels of equality enjoyed by women.
Equally, women are more likely to judge themselves based on the opinions and perceptions of other people (Cowlin, 2002, p27) which, therefore, means that they are naturally more concerned with their outward appearance and place importance on how others perceive them. However, they are not necessarily wrong to do so since we do tend to place a lot of importance on the appearance of people around us and, however inadvertently, we do tend to judge people based on whether they are attractive or not (Akst, date?, p281). This does also seem to be ever-increasingly the case for both men and women in kind, despite the more traditional view that women are objectified by men but not vice versa. This appears to be changing as society evolves: “The importance of appearance appears to be rising on both sides of the gender divide.” (Akst, date?, p282). The view here seems to be that whilst women do naturally place greater pressure on themselves because of the societal demand for prettiness, young men are likely to begin to follow a similar path, as well as all the difficult consequences which naturally ensue.
The very idea of body image is a controversial one because obviously, everyone holds a different opinion of what is and isn’t attractive in a person. This is why we are not all attracted to the same type of person. Sheldon (1940) discusses the idea that there are three distinct forms of body type and that each are immediately associated with a distinct set of personal characteristics (Stoppard, 2000, p129). This type of idea gives rise to stereotypes which are often unfairly attributed to people’s appearances and helps to perpetuate ideas such as larger people as lazy or smaller people as being cold. However, the truly controversy which lies behind such a discussion is that the very type ‘body image’ negates its associated meaning: the body is something which requires necessities such as food and warmth and feels things such as hunger and thirst, but an image does not and so, therefore, the term is one which allows for individuals to disassociate their body and their bodily needs from the pursuit of an attractive appearance (Stoppard, 2000, p129). Fascinatingly, this could be what gives rise to an ever-increasing number of cases of eating disorders.
In conclusion, it is clear that society’s obsession with appearance is having an extremely detrimental effect on young people everywhere who are growing up with a contrived view of what is expected of them and their bodies. Young women, in particular, are under immense pressure to be beautiful but in terms of standards that are entirely unreasonable. It is also clear that young men are beginning to feel this pressure too and it seems clear that if the media continues to display unreasonably ‘perfect’ celebrities then society will continue to increasingly place pressure on ‘normal’ people to conform. It is a poor cycle of an unhealthy obsession with body image and appearance.
References
Akst, D. (year of publication). What Meets the Eye. In Editor(s) names. Title of the book. Place of publication: Publishers.
Behar, J. & Schoenhals, M. (2001). Visions of the Twenty First Century. New York: Global Academic Publishing.
Bruhn, J.G. (2011). The Sociology of Community Connections. New York: Springer.
Cowlin, A.F. (2002). Women’s Fitness Program Development. Illinois: Human Kinetics.
Dougherty, D. & Hudak, R. (2011). Clinical Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders in Adults and Children. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Holmes, S. & Redmond, S. (2007). Stardom and Celebrity: a reader. California: SAGE Publishings.
Jackson, L.A. (1992). Physical Appearance and Gender: sociobiological and sociocultural perspectives. New York: SUNY Press.
Stoppard, J.M. (2000). Understanding Depression: feminist social constructionist approaches. London: Routledge.
