Women and girls often battle the expectations laid out to us by society. Be skinny, but not too skinny that you look unwell; have a healthy body, but apparently without an ounce of fat; achieve a ‘slim-thick’ figure, but your natural curves aren’t good enough. Women have become customisable barbie dolls at society’s leisure, but is this a new issue, or have women always been striving to achieve the unattainable throughout history?
The phrase ‘everyone is beautiful in their own way’ is frequently mocked, dismissed as a “diversion” from acknowledging people as unattractive. Yet, beauty has never been fixed or universal. Someone who may be regarded as unattractive today, could have been idealised in another culture or period of history. If our perception of beauty can dramatically change throughout time, can anyone truly be considered ‘ugly’?
When we look deeper, we must ask: who decides these beauty standards? Have they truly evolved or are we still unconsciously conforming to society’s ideals.
If these standards are so confusing, contradictory and harmful, why do we continue to pursue them? Women are constantly seeking validation in many forms, because society relentlessly amplifies our insecurities. Our alleged ‘flaws’ are spotlighted and conformity to the beauty standard is the only solution. We are encouraged to change ourselves, only to receive validation for fitting an ideal that might change tomorrow. If we sacrifice our individuality and authenticity, is it truly worth it? I for one, do not think the beauty standards were ever designed with women’s interests at heart.
Unfortunately, our access to the great and spectacular revelations of social media has only provided more momentum for society’s agenda. Don’t get me wrong, I love posting on Instagram as much as the next person (maybe a bit too much), however social media has turned women’s bodies into trends rather than authentically valuing them as individuals. A body type can be celebrated for years, where women are highly influenced to pursue it, and then society decides that it isn’t desirable enough anymore, onto the next! Women have been forced into this harmful cycle of events just to feel comfortable within their own skin. In 2014, Kim Kardashian’s ‘Break the Internet’ cover for Paper Magazine became symbolic of the BBL craze, where the curvy, hourglass aesthetic was desired. However, almost twelve years later, we are witnessing what has been described as the ‘Ozempic Epidemic’, a trend in which the medicine has become associated with rapid weight loss and aesthetic expectations, adding more pressure to pursue rapid transformation to fit an ideal.
Additionally, beauty standards come at the expense of individuality. Instead of embracing uniqueness, everyone is quick to judge when beauty doesn’t fit the mainstream. Alternative styles can be treated as strange simply because they reject conventional expectations. However, even mainstream ‘alternative’ aesthetics can eventually become trends, creating another cycle where ‘individuality’ is copied. With the help of social media, everyone is morphing into the same person, even though beauty is supposed to express who we are as people. True individuality isn’t necessarily about finding another aesthetic to follow but feeling free not to conform to one at all.
My take is that somebody will always have something to say, so why not be yourself! You can change yourself endlessly and still fail to satisfy everyone. The most important thing is to prioritise how you feel about yourself; to feel comfortable in your own skin, to smile in the mirror when you see your face, to put on an outfit you love. After all, beauty standards can change tomorrow, and I have better things to do.