In contemporary society there are many attractive voices clamoring to be heard. Many offer strong opinions on what makes a woman beautiful. Media today has all sorts to say about that—creating an unrealistic image in our society of what a beautiful woman is. Most women do not fit that mold, leaving them unsatisfied and struggling with self-image problems.
Recognizing the gap between reality and popular culture, the makers of Dove beauty products developed “A Campaign for Beauty,” wherein the answer to what makes someone pretty would be revealed. Creators are determined to make media, models, and the human race aware that one does not have to fit into a uniformed Barbie mold. In a commercial created by Dove titled, “Evolution”, we watch a model who starts off as looking like herself come to work. The model arrives ready to shoot pictures for magazines, fashion, billboards—the images that we all see everyday.
When I first saw the model, my naïve mind thought, “Wow, she is not like the person I see in the magazines. She doesn’t look like she has the features that those beautiful models possess.” Hmmm…why would I think that? After all, she was that model. But what I saw next introduced me to reality. Producers took this model, put pounds of makeup on her, covered up all of her imperfections, did her hair, changed the lighting, and then snapped pictures.
But the process didn’t stop there. They then took one of her best photos and doctored it. They elongated her neck, made her eyes bigger, airbrushed her face, made her features more striking, and slenderized her cheeks. That was the image that appeared on the billboard. The image that people pointed at as they walked passed. That is the image women see and think, “Wow, she’s so perfect. How come I don’t look like that?” The answer is simple. Because even the model doesn’t look like that. Hardly anyone does.
Our perception of female beauty has been distorted by popular culture. And whether we like it or not, this is something that defines us. That makes up part of our society. That girls and women everywhere from the time they can apply makeup and from the time they watch their moms paint on cosmetics, strive to be like. And the matter of fact is: we will not be satisfied with who we are and what we look like if we keep striving to be someone else—a woman who in many cases, does not exist or who is also unsatisfied with her looks.
This image of beauty can prevent us from reaching our full potential. What if women considered that being beautiful was defined by being unique, confident, happy and healthy? Now that would be an image worth plastering across a billboard. Women everywhere have become addicted to finding the latest trend to look like that… but who decides what that is? I admire someone who is 100% confident in herself—one who strives to achieve what God would have her.
No other earthly creature competes for vanity the same way humans do…and we admire and love the many qualities of each. Consider dogs, for instance. Take the competition and emotion out of the human beauty equation, and it is easy to recognize what makes one species of dog from another—all are beautiful and unique. And we simply classify them based on what we value most. Some recognize the Golden Retrievers for their loyalty; another adores a poodle for its curly crazy hair. Any way you cut it, a Golden Retriever, no matter how hard it tries, will never be a poodle. Bottom line. And you know what? I think I’m okay with that.
Emmaline
To watch Dove's commercial, click HERE
