Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall: Deconstructing Beauty Standards
“The fat in our posterior is exactly the same type of fat as the fat in our arms.” Yet we let beauty standards play ‘god’ in determining the ideal distribution of this fat. We are obsessed with modifying our already healthy bodies to acquiesce to conventional beauty standards. The question of the day is, “Why?” Why do we invest a significant portion of our thoughts, time, money, and energy into composing our bodies? We’re configured by the people surrounding us and the media promoted to us, to internalize the pressure of perfection. If it’s not imitating the “perfect” lifestyle and personality, it’s constructing the perfect body.
According to recent data from Statista, the global beauty industry is valued at $534 billion, with a significant portion driven by products and services aimed at altering and enhancing physical appearance. With billions invested in physical enhancement, we have prioritized our physique presentation so much that we neglect our minds and souls. Humans have evolved from physically and intellectually active to pomegranates stuck in a dystopian society; visually appealing on the outside yet sour on the inside, housed by the oppression of our creations. The next time you feel obliged to alter a healthy physical characteristic of yours, ask yourself, “Why?” Remind yourself that the presence of someone else’s beauty does not equate to the absence of yours. If you were turned inside out for a day, would you still be considered beautiful?
The media has been weaponized to engulf us in insecurities, highlight our flaws, and blur our admirable qualities. We’re all pointing fingers at people we’re convinced are better than us. Meanwhile, four fingers are pointing back at us, pleading to be noticed. We’re trapped on social media and forced to play a game of Follow the Leader. Since there’s no actual leader and we’re all following one another around the circle of comparison, any external perspective would conclude the game being played is Ring Around the Rosie; with our self-esteem falling lower every cycle.
Social media fosters a relentless cycle of comparison and unattainable ideals, warping our perception of self-worth. Despite this fact, it is fair to say that the media is a double-edged sword. Considering that the media plays a role in reversing our brainwashed mindset by exposing us to pieces like this article and the thought-provoking videos you come across during your downtime scroll, some may argue that it empowers individuality through body positivity campaigns. This brings us to the second question of the day, how much good has that done for us?
Speaking from a Nigerian perspective, in the not-so-distant past, standards were implemented for women at birth. How we should look and act, what we should say and become, and when we should express ourselves and invite our presence. With societal pressures often dictating how women should behave and look, we were programmed to focus majorly on how we were viewed and perceived because that’s all that mattered pertaining to us.
Our ambitions, dreams, passions, and aspirations cowered before our family life, husbands, children, and familial relationships. We were simply a face and body. Consequently, with a gun to our head, we chose their side. Not because we believed the sacrifice was worth it but because we knew that gun to our head, they would pull the trigger. We reluctantly submitted to their demands because the death we experienced wide awake appeared to be a less excruciating alternative to the death that permanently erased all hope. Hope to be seen, hope to be heard, and hope to be granted the privilege of fundamental rights. Nigerian women continue to face societal expectations to prioritize marriage and family over personal ambitions, with physical appearance being a significant part of this equation.
Latterly, who’s to say it’s significantly different? Admittedly, there are undeniable improvements but in a game of spot the difference, the contrast starts and ends with the media. Our exhaustion morphed into resentment and fueled our dauntless expression audaciously. Congratulations to us. We’ve successfully found our voice under the rubbles of the patriarchy but what good is our voice if we are only heard to be silenced? Listening is a step forward but without comprehension and action, what direction is the step steered in?
Historically, Nigerian beauty standards emphasized fuller, curvier bodies, reflecting ideals of fertility and health. However, the influence of Western media has shifted this narrative, introducing thinner, more Eurocentric beauty standards. While Nigerian beauty standards have adapted under Western influence, this is not unique to the nation; cultures worldwide grapple with the clash of traditional and modern ideals.
Frankly speaking, it’s delusional to believe that the media can be sanctified of these concepts of beauty when the people and not the media are to blame for the harmful ideologies and standards imposed on humans with the impression that we’re dolls. Regardless, the media perpetuates these beliefs and expectations by involuntarily subscribing us to posts, games, episodes, podcasts, movies, and advertisements that promote unrealistic body types and pressure women into adopting reformed facial structures. It’s no wonder we are addicted to the illusion of perfection. We’re hypnotized by the media to normalize and idolize these beauty images and standards.
Are we to blame for our infinite quest for perfection when even adolescent boys have opinions on women’s bodies? Fearlessly expressing their desire for an hourglass figure in person and in the media, and shamelessly imposing these yearnings on people in their age group and disturbingly, people outside it as well. We’re imprisoned in a world occupied by male humans ranging from boys to guys to men sexualizing females with bodies whether pubescent or fully matured and the media not only eternizes this but it also gives these deviants a sense of community. Every like, repost, and encouraging response promotes their ludicrous mentality. Ironically, even reprimanding reactions to their provocative thoughts and beliefs pose the threat of fueling their egos.
Quite like chasing perfection, the battle with the misuse of the media is a game that can’t be won. However, we can at least try by affirming that we do not have to become reflections of each other to appear attractive. Quoting D.R. Ambedkar, “The only thing humans have in common is that we are human.” Our shared humanity supersedes our superficial differences. Your body is a vessel, take care of it but don’t obsess over it. To dismantle the pedestal beauty occupies, we must redefine our value beyond appearances. The moment we start to de-centre beauty is the moment we begin to behold beauty.