Often times being a woman feels like participating in a never-ending competition that you didn’t even know you signed up for, nor is there ever actually a winner. We all jus keep competing, with ourselves, with each other, as the target continues to move and the idea of “perfection” is just always out of reach.
So where did the idea that we all must strive to be something that we are not—as well as longing for what others have instead of appreciating our own bodies—come from? Well this should come as no surprise but a lot of it has to do with the media. Magazines are littered with models who have been air brushed to perfection. Even with knowing this we still all covet the models who grace the covers as well as read all their dieting and exercise tips on how to get “that body.
Most magazine companies have no problem capitalizing off of and participating in America’s insecurities. So when I heard about Darling magazine I was in complete awe. First off Darling does not retouch any of the women they use in their magazine. They believe that every one is beautiful and do not need to be altered in order to fit in with cultural or media standards. This is one thing that really set Darling apart from others, and made it stand out to me. We live in a society where photo shopping and altering women’s bodies has become so normalized that we don’t even think twice when we hear that its being done. And that is truly sad.
Through doing this Darling is one of the few magazines that is combating the idea of an unattainable, exaggerated beauty. They promote respect for women’s bodies not solely because they do not Photoshop but because of the many other ideals they posses as well. Darling combats the idea that thin is beautiful by expressing that being fit is when you are the healthiest version of yourself, they never print celebrity gossip, only feature clothing within the range of the average income, and offers advice about issues faced by real life women such as anxiety.
When I imagine I brighter future for our girls in generations to come this is one I most often gravitate towards. One where young girls are not raised in a world that encourages you to change who they are. One where they do not grow up from a young age always believing they will never be skinny, pretty, or good enough for someone else. It is sad that when we see a magazine not participating in these things we see it as “revolutionary” instead of the norm.