Our definition of “beauty” is constantly changing. Year by year a new standard is placed on women on what is considered desirable and quite honestly it stinks. With the rise of social media influencers and BBLs being as common as cavity fillings, it is quite easy to forget that beauty is arbitrary.
What was considered beautiful back then
There has always been some standard when it comes to beauty. Ancient Greeks valued perfect symmetry and slim proportions. Being small was everything. Having small hands, a small waist even small feet meant you were more feminine or dainty. In the Victorian and renaissance ages, women would wear the tightest corset to have the illusion of a nonexistent waist. In China, Chinese women would physically bind their feet into abnormal shapes just for the sake of attractiveness and status. This practice was called foot binding. Women would force their feet in tiny shoes all for the sake of looking more exotic for men. This was a practice, for the sake of beauty, leaving millions of young girls physically debilitated.
Then, hourglass figures were beginning to make traction as stars like Marylin Monroe became the new sex symbol. Although she was pretty slim a lot of people liked the idea of not being a size 0 anymore. We saw a bit of variety. Beauty could be curveless like Twiggy and long legs and hips like Noami Campbell.
What does beauty look like now?
Now “Beauty” -and I say that very loosely- looks the same. It’s not fun anymore. At least in the 80s and 90s, we saw a bit of variation and authenticity. Beauty depended more on your ethnicity and environment, but now it seems monotone and very homogenized. Now beauty is the Kardashian look. Squinty almond eyes, symmetrical face, full matte lips, big butt, big boobs, thin waist, etc. There are even filters catered to make you look more chiseled and more defined than you are. People go as far as getting plastic surgery just to look like social media influencers ( I saw this article on Buzzfeed about a girl paying thousands to look like Kim Kardashian).
Now this is the perfect time to say that I am not bashing cosmetic surgery in any way. I believe that if you have the means to fix that crooked tooth or want to get a boob lift that is perfectly up to you! What I am saying is that all of this should be for you and your confidence. No one else should be the reason why you put your body under the needle. It shouldn’t be to get validation from random strangers on the internet or to cater to the opposite (or same) sex.
Don’t get me wrong, we have come a long way when it comes to standards of beauty. It used to not be black women at all. If you didn’t have white skin, blue eyes, slim nose and smooth silky hair then baby society did not consider you beautiful . Now I can see dark skin, kinky curly hair and my beautiful broad nose on magazine cover! My question is are we taking the right steps forward?
What we need to think about for the future
Kids not even up to sixteen are fed with this fake illusion of what it means to be beautiful and by twenty they don’t like what they see in the mirror. As older sisters, parents, uncles or aunties we need to help change that notion. Filter your social media to include more diverse looking people on your feed. Pick up magazines that represent you, and watch Tv that includes a diverse cast. These are some things you can do to defeat detrimental beauty hierarchies.
As women, we sometimes think that we might not be enough. But ladies, we are more than enough. We need to stop putting ourselves in pain for the sake of others. Real beauty is looking at yourself in the mirror and accepting everything.
