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How the media changes our perception of beauty

by ech03

Ok, let's turn on your TV and pick up one channel, then get sit and wait until the advertisements come. Did you see a beautiful woman with a skinny body, big breast, light hair and full lips in the advertisements? YES! Most of advertisements used "beautiful" women to promote products or services. And also can be found many "beautiful" women at movies, mini series, video clips, et cetera. They are having the criteria above and recognize as beautiful woman. Moreover, we watch beauty pageant contests where many "beautiful" woman walk on the stage, the women have a body that agreed as sexy, beautiful and ideal body.

How about women who do not have these criteria? Do others will consider them as beautiful women? Because media have created perception of beautiful women and during the time have created public opinion and agreement for what a concept of beautiful women is.

Did you ever read a history book or classis literatures? Then we realize that women hundred years ago were not as slim as today and will be categorized as "Fat" women by people who think beautiful woman should have a skinny body. By having advertisements with many skinny and slim women, the perception of beauty has been changed. Many tools, equipments, or methods used for having big breast and that shown on TV, then public has perception that big breast is beauty. Ok, pick one magazine and be an analyst of cosmetics or clothes advertisements, or other advertisements. Again, the same perception of beauty has been stated and no matter the readers realize or not, these pictures, texts or figures have changed their perception of beauty.

Media, whether electronics or not, have big contribution to establish public opinion for something. Even some idealists said having control in media means you control the world. In this case, the perception of beauty has been created as what people in media want to. This is result in many bad consequences to women who are not categorized to this type. Many women who stand out of the categories but smart, kind, helpful, friendly or et cetera still can not be accepted as a beautiful woman. Beauty has been created as a perfect woman physically.

This perception also gives advantages to producer of cosmetics, drugs, tools, et cetera and plastic surgery experts or beauticians. Why? Because women who think they are not beauty physically will do many changes to their whole body. As an Asian woman, I knew exactly what many Asian women and girls have done to their body. They want to have fairy skin, blonde hair, taller, big butt, et cetera. Even in China, many girls have been obsessed for getting taller and do some painful surgery to their body to make it true. Girls with brown skin want to have fairy skin and experiment to some cosmetics or maybe others who want to get slimmer and consume diet pills.

Those because of many advertisements, movies, clips or others that lead human perception for what beauty it is. Then, who think they do not belong to beautiful category try to change their performance just for accepting and admitting into beautiful category. Inner beauty has been forgotten, outer beauty is the most important. Even though media has commercial side but they also have responsibility for altering readers and audience perception of something. For beauty issue, media should give balance information about what the meaning of beauty is and lets the audience or readers decide by themselves.

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