beyonce said pretty hurts, and she was right

in ancient greece, it was believed that cohesive proportions of facial features were the secret to a beautiful woman. during the victorian era, features like tiny lips were considered the epitome of beauty. in our modern day, i personally believe that standards of beauty are constantly being redefined and uprooted every day in order to fight back against restrictive and harmful frameworks for physical representations of self. bruce norton, a political science professor at american university explains, "what is considered a beautiful face is often influenced by what is going on in society."

this is evident, at least in the united states, under the current system of consumer capitalism. industries thrive off of creating and forcing insecurities upon (not limited to, but addressed in this post) women everywhere. for instance, cosmetic surgery has become an immensely profitable industry worldwide because of the normalization of getting surgical procedures done onto someone under the guise of "self-improvement". the beauty industry harnesses the psychological need to be accepted, making the 21st century girl more susceptible to insecurity and perceived dysmorphias of one's self.

insecurity creates a bond amongst people. i always think back to the classic scene in mean girls, when each girl participates in the ritual (lol) of standing in front of the mirror and pointing out something they hate about their appearances. the omnipresence of modern media and the fashion world's influence on the average woman makes it so that there is seemingly no escape from the constant influx of strategically targeted advertising, in order to lead one to pay loads money for a "desirable" aesthetic.

following this, the immeasurable pressure on "self-improvement" stems highly from celebrity culture. for example, across the female members of the kardashian-jenner's family's instagram accounts, beauty products such as teeth whitening kits, at home botox, and eyelash extension sets are promoted by each woman. positive promotion of these products causes their followers (many being young women) to have no choice but to compare themselves to these powerful women. even now with the modern movement of spreading body positivity, it is inherent in all young girls to emulate the success of their idols-- they must value their physical appearance rather than things that give them credibility such as talent, hard work, and intellect.