Bendanillo 1

Pauline Bendanillo

Ms. Queen Lee Godoy

EAPP

October 26, 2020

What is Today’s Standard of a Beautiful Woman?

Women have always been heavily pressured when it comes to appearance. It seems like

society doesn’t have a definite stance when it comes to beauty. Women shouldn’t be fat or

skinny. Women should have a slim figure, but still curvy to be desirable. Despite magazines and

tabloids claiming to be all for women in different sizes and bodies, it isn’t necessarily the case.

We spend hours in the mirror applying makeup and loads of money on special diets and plastic

surgery just to meet society’s expectations.

Although beauty standards for women varied throughout the course of time, they have

always been unrealistic and placed women in boxes. We live in a world where beauty has

become eurocentric or westernized. I grew up thinking that having light skin, high noses and

brown eyes as the only acceptable form of beauty. I think this toxic perception of beauty is

heavily rooted in the media, especially television where skin-whitening soaps are heavily

advertised and mestiza women play dignified roles on screen.

But how does this affect us women? What type of women are we trying to look like

anyways? Are people unwilling to open their minds to diversity in beauty. We sometimes feel

that beauty is something that is solely physical. Can’t a woman be appreciated for her talent,

mind, humor and soul, rather than the body she has to offer? Men can still acquire partners and

are appreciated despite not being attractive, so why is an “ugly” woman not worth anyone’s

time?
 Bendanillo 1

Tabloids and social media also pit women against each other, such as comparing them for

each other’s appearances. Magazines such as playboy and mainstream blockbusters also

objectify women. How will this reflect little boys who will grow up thinking of women as

possessions rather than individuals. Celebrity culture is also becoming increasingly toxic now

that Hollywood stars are claiming to be natural in their photos, despite it being obviously tainted

by photoshops and filters. Social media has become the window to reality for many young girls.

How will they feel when they realize the people they are idolizing are fake and superficial?

What’s worse is girls feeling insecure about their bodies when there are bigger problems

to face in life. Focusing on yourself shouldn't be your only concern, it should be focusing on

what you can do to become better. We shouldn’t force ourselves to live up to unrealistic and

insipid standards the media has set out for us. After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Above all, be yourself, because beauty isn’t something that should be forced upon ourselves..