Polytechnic University of the Philippines

Main Branch Campus – Sta. Mesa, Manila City, Philippines

Department of Psychology
Understanding the Self
Name: Santos, Matthew Christian, dS. Subj. Code: GEED 10023
Course/Year and Section: ABLCS 1-3 Subj. Prof: Maria Corazon Constantino

LESSON ON CULTURE, BEAUTY, AND THE FEMALE BODY

1. What does beauty standard mean(s)?

ANSWER:

Beauty standards was state as the “Feminine beauty ideal” which means the maintaining beauty of a
Woman in the society. Beauty standard for me was a “social order of the society” which women needs to obey
the word called “Attractiveness” which shows that women in all over the world must maintain and strive the
beauty that men especially who wants only satisfied in the “fake” beauty. This mentality shows us that beauty
has standard in the society.

We always said that “where your true beauty” but we always complain to those female individualities
that they need to wear make-ups, practice a true woman etiquette, and act as a woman which I visualize that
we have “strict” beauty standards in this society. We kept ourselves to be strict on that standards – they hid
sometimes their natural beauty because of that “unsatisfied” and “strict” standards which some women
cannot reach because of the low self-esteem. Some men choose those perfectly created female because we
always stay on that filthy standards that women need to be extravagant on wearing make-ups, wear a good
with a brand and maintain that physique just to be choose.

2. What are the psychological effects of beauty standards?

ANSWER:

As I observe some social media reviews about on the current beauty standards, I see how beauty
standards makes more sickening enough to obey as many women goes to extra lose weight and taking some
surgeries just to have a “perfect body” as they began to feel desperate to do it and desperate to feel the
attention of the crowd. Those women began to get depression and getting some unsatisfied life as they obey
those crowd request on their body.

This current generation, the beauty standards that all women strive were unattainable and to
gruesome to do it as many of them has suffered to anorexia nervosa and began to take a dozen of pill, drugs,
and surgeries just to strive a perfect and satisfied body for a low cost of payment, attention.

It is too furious to obey this beauty standard because we see how we began to be attention seeker,
how we change and abuse ourselves just to be a perfect ones. We always guarantee ourselves to be perfect
even though there are no perfect things in this world. We look to those beauty magazine which holds some
product that “will make beauty” even though it can harm your body. This is the true meaning of beauty
standards in this generation, we always obey those unattainable things for the attention we want.
3. Explain the meaning of beauty as a social construct and biological adaptation. Give example for each.
ANSWER:

As I see the society began to be offensive and being reluctant to accept the true beauty – They
immerse themselves to a subjective as they unenthusiastic see the beauty standard as an extravagant mental
and physical rule or order that both genders even trans and gays or lesbian or any genders must obtain. This
body and mental rule for me as a socially construct as they immerse in many past centuries as women must
be physically beautiful and must had the perfect inches on her body as well the male individual. The true
beauty standards were rather to be biological adaptation because as we born in this 3 layered and habitat
planet, we foresee how society must accept all the flaws of one person as they began to face the reality not
the imaginative culture of this world.

This beauty standard is just like a horrific movie which had a gruesome effect on the character as
dozen of genders especially woman must change her body just to be good for the eye and to be to the
character standards of this society. Beauty must be accepted first when we born, we must accept the true
flaws and the true beauty of any genders, we must change our mentality that beauty standards must be
accept as long they are physically perfect and must be mentally fitted in this unsatisfied society in this
generation.

4. Explain why beauty is associated with morality. Give example

ANSWER:

Moral is the foundation of beauty, proper ethics is the aesthetic shape of our body which people
associated the beauty in the essence of morality which we, human considerate morality whenever we choose.
We always “Mas pipiliin ko pa ang kabaitan kaysa sa kagandahan” but we never obey that thing because we
always considered the decision of someone rather than to us.

We always trim our beauty in the way of desperation and seeking for attention rather than showing
our true morality on those things. We always reassure that virtue must need in beautification of one another,
but we did not even associate that thing to beauty because we always on the chemical beautification rather
than morality beautification.

We always want the taste of morality beyond the beauty which we always crave on that thing, but we
did not take the responsibility of cultivating the morality and use that in a proper way. We knew that good
must be the condiments of beauty, but we see that bad and good always associated in the charisma of an
aesthetic being.

5. Is beauty culture a sign of empowerment or oppression? Explain your answer.

ANSWER:

There are two answer for that, one for empowerment and one for oppression. Empowerment on the way many
of feministic protest empowered women to be true to their beauty which we see how many of current
generation women protest or make an advocacy for accepting the true beauty but in the despair side, we see
that Beauty can fall into oppression as many some countries oppress women to be good looking one to boost
their satisfactory and how they reluctant on the accepting the facts.

Empowerment and Oppression can be the answer, but we see how affect this two choices on the general
beauty of one being. We see despair and agony in beautification just to be attainable on the society.
6. Enumerate at least 5 causes of the dramatic shifts in beauty standards. Give example for each cause.
ANSWER:

Throughout the years, the beauty satisfactory of the society shift into unattainable one which shows
how female continuously abuse their natural body by taking up beautification medicine or taking a major
surgery to beautify their own natural body. This mentality becomes a perception of the current society which
they cannot accept the natural body that a woman had.

The paradigm shift of the beauty standards evolved throughout the years. Here are 5 causes
why the beauty standards evolved into an unattainable goals for the female of the society.

FIRST, false marketing of beauty. Many of magazines before shows how women must dress neatly
which they need to dress in a branded one and as they suit that kind of dress, they must use a dozen of make-
up just to shows how beautiful they are which many of women in the late 1900s use a dozen beauty products
just to suit their beauty in the societal beauty standards. This thing make sense when the 2010 A.D. when
many of female change the beauty standards into attainable as they protest and voice-out how they devalue
their natural beauty which many of capitalist company use a “photoshop” beauty of a women.

SECOND, weight shaming. This shaming habit of the society in the fat or chubby female become
harmful to female which they gain low self-appreciation and glamorized the hoax marketing of body. This kind
of harm can cause to a woman or man to abuse him or herself by doing a daily intense diet which it can harm
to his/her abdominal and intestine.

THIRD, Technology. Nowadays, Beauty can be change using Technology as many of beauty
magazines and retailers of beauty products edits the dozen of flaws of a female promoter as they want to
take the money of all women who want to be beautiful and to be gorgeous in their exterior body. This kind of
technique usually use in marketing of beauty products in the market which shows how capitalism works in the
cycle of beautification.

FOURTH is the Opinion of the crowd, dozens number of women has been intentionally manipulate as
they are the one of the topic in the gossip which many of what-so-called “chismosa” in our country. This kind
of verbal harassment are kept going as some women feel to be unconscious on their natural body as they
manipulated by that kind of human.

FIFTH is the Perfection idealism of the society, our current society holds a pillars of satisfactory as
beauty standards become a drastic issue for a women who had being subjective in various things like weight
measurement, height measurement etc. This idea holds a different issue for all female who cannot attained
those higher standards of the society. We are not consciously perceive on the fact how women attained their
beauty just to accept there flaws and minimal physique on there physical body.
7. Explain the four (4) aspects of body image. Give example for each aspect base on your perception of
yourself.

ANSWER:

Body Image is one of the beauty standards that humans strive to do it like changing your weight,
getting a fit body, perfect body height and having a good and slim curves but further for that, body image is
substantial to strive as many of people were being teased on the way how they accept their own self and
physique. Today we will talk about the 4 aspects of body image in the current society.

First one is PERCEPTUAL (The way you see yourself). On this aspect, it shows how we perceive
ourselves as a beauty one, how we appreciate ourselves by looking at the mirror saying “how
gorgeous/handsome I am” which gives an affection to as that we do not need to strive to have a fitted or slim
body as we totally accept ourselves. One example is how I accept my body figure, I know how slim I am, how
big my buttocks and how fat my thighs because all I know is this is my body, this my own natural beauty as a
men which I think sometimes that I need to strive a little bit but we a total acceptance to ourselves.

Second is AFFECTIVE (The way you feel about the way you look). On this aspect show how we feel
when we look on our reflection which we gave us a doubt of understanding how to stand to any opinion we
hear on every individual we met in every phase in our life. This Affective stage set us to manage our dilemma
on how we look on the affection we get to others. In my case, this is the thing that I hate sometimes, being
affective to those opinion on my relatives which it gives me a terrible phase on my life.

Third one is the COGNITIVE (The thoughts and beliefs you feel about your body). In this phase of
Body Image aspect, it holds how we accept or deny our physical attributes, how we hate or like the flaws we
have, how we look on the scars and fats we get in our weight. This cognitive phase of accepting y true “me”
set me to able accept my own flaws and attributes in my physique, it shows me how able I am to be cognitive
when it comes to accept my own self.

The Fourth and Last aspect is the BEHAVIOURAL (The things you do in relation to the way you look).
This aspects helps us on how we relay ourselves on the universal standards of people – How we relate the
opinions and facts on the crowd beliefs which it gives us the behavior to think wise when we heard those
unjustified evidence to hold.