Does Fake Mean Perfect?
Whoever said different wasn't perfect, never stood out.
Introduction
The perfect person is not who you see in advertisements. It’s you. The abstract idea of the abuses of advertisements affect all human beings negatively about their body image. Advertisers use unrealistically fake people. The models that they use are photoshoped completely and even sometimes converge two, three, or even four models together to form the “perfect” person. Advertisers goals are to make all people fall into the trap of believing that if you buy this product, you will most likely look like those models, but that is not true. Men and women these days are more concerned about what others think of them, rather than what they think of themselves. People need to be confident about their own body image because their attitude affects how others feel about themselves as well. When people feel negative about themselves, people tend to see them as a negative person. They see that person the way that person feels about his or herself. Be positive about your own body image because there’s nothing wrong with standing out, yet advertisers find a problem with that.
Insecure due to media
Expected to look like those "perfect" women in ads.
Skinny is the new perfect.
Problem
People’s insecurities are used against them on the media. The type of insecurity that is used is the targeting of men and women’s body image. “Whether on TV or in magazines, there are a lot of commercials that consider only a certain type of woman beautiful. These women are mostly thin. These ads are very powerful; they gradually change people's beliefs. Ads instill those beliefs into most of the people in society, so most people have the same thinking” (Li-Chuan Chiang). This article justifies how people are affected by the society. There is definitely not one type of body image for a person because everyone has an imperfection, and when advertisers point it out, it’s extremely hard to ignore it. The society is purposely pushing these negative feelings onto men and women. Their goal of doing so is to provide a solution to “fix” the “problems” of men and and women. It is not just women who feel insecure the same thing goes for men too. “They then showed them photos of fit, male models and asked them to rate the models on their attractiveness. That's when the men's insecurity was revealed. The worse they felt about their own bodies, the lower they rated the pictures” (Body Image). These men rate the models lower to make themselves feel better about their body image. With all these situations advertisers should rethink their way of “fixing” our body’s.
Solution
Although media targets men and women’s views on what their body is supposedly expected to look like, it doesn’t mean their body makeup is wrong. Girls feel the need to get plastic surgery or lose weight based on what they see in commercials, but what they need to realize is that those models in those commercials are unhealthily thin and unrealistically made up. “Girls struggle every day with the message that they're only beautiful if their bodies fit the narrow image the media says is "perfect." Seventy-five percent of girls say they would like surgery to change their bodies to look more like the girls and women they see in magazines, in movies, and on TV” (A’ine McCarthy). Women see other women in ads thinking “I’m supposed to look like this. I’m not perfect if I don’t look like them.” Advertisers want women to feel insecure about themselves, so their products can fix any problem that women feel self conscious about. The thing is, their products do not really help. There’s nothing that will change advertisers minds, but there are many things that can change men and women’s own minds. “It can be hard to look at an image in a magazine and then compare it to your own body, but remember that those magazines target our insecurities to get us to buy or do something to feel "beautiful." You don't need to dish out the money for anything, including surgery, to be beautiful. All you have to do is be yourself” (A’ine McCarthy). Anyone can feel insecure about their imperfections, but it is not the advertiser’s job to point them out, nor is it their job to say they can fix it. Anyone can be beautiful by being different, but they can’t do that without standing out.
Conclusion
Being perfect doesn't mean wearing loads of makeup, being skinny, or being what many people call "flawless". No one can be perfect, but anyone can be beautiful in their own way, all they have to do is stand out. Different is good, clones are not. There can only be one you, and make that one you count. If a person looked at his or herself in the mirror thinking, "I am not perfect. I will never look like them,” then people will see that one person with negative thoughts. Your views on yourself affect the people around you. Have positive thoughts about yourself because it’s okay to be different, and whoever thought differently, never stood out.
Works Cited
Body Image: Equal-Opportunity Anxiety Tufts University Health & Nutrition
Letter, 15260143, Nov2002, Vol. 20, Issue 9
Chiang, Li-Chuan. "Women's Image." Skipping Stones (Vol. 16, No. 1). Jan./Feb. 2004: 9.
SIRS Discoverer. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
McCarthy, A'ine. "Cut It Out." New Moon. March/April 2003: 12-13. SIRS Discoverer. Web.
15 Dec. 2015.
Abby Lin & Eva Gould
Eva Gould - Introduction
Eva Gould - Problem
Abby Lin - Solution
Abby Lin - Conclusion