Advertising, particularly in the fashion industry, is known for its bias towards a particular type of look and an exclusive definition of beauty. The practice of selecting one type of female model and manipulating images with photo-shop causes an obsession with physical perfection, creating an unattainable standard of beauty in the minds of men and women everywhere.
Through their “Real Beauty” campaign, Dove is bringing this problem into the spotlight and tackling it head-on. The company is revolutionizing traditional approaches to advertising by using a media platform to change the way that the world perceives beauty. This campaign aims to promote self-confidence and a healthy body image for women. According to their website, “the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty was created to provoke discussion and encourage debate.” The company identifies its intended purpose as, “imagine a world where beauty is a source of confidence, not anxiety,” and they explain that they are focusing on, “widening the definition of beauty.”
This video was released by Dove a few days ago, urging women to “Choose Beautiful”. It is representative of women of many ethnicities, body types, and ages.
In the video, women in countries all over the world are faced with the task of choosing between two doors through which to enter a building. One door is labeled “Average”, and the other door is labeled “Beautiful.” These women are expected to choose a door based upon how they feel about themselves, and their responses to this challenge vary greatly.
Initially, most women felt pressured by those around them and chose the “Average” door to avoid appearing conceited. Other women shared that they genuinely felt they did not qualify for the “Beautiful” door. One woman described the experiment as “confronting”, and shared that you had to, “be self-conscious of how you perceive yourself, and perhaps if it lines up with how the rest of the world perceives you.” Another woman shared that, “Beautiful to me…It’s too far away out of reach.”
By the end of the video, many women had reconsidered their choice to go through the “Average” door, and felt confident enough to enter through the “Beautiful” door. Through self-reflection and encouragement from others, these women were able to bypass the “Average” door without looking back.
Through messages of positivity and support, Dove is prompting women all over the world to realize that beauty is self-determined, not socially constructed. Dove is urging women to never let social anxiety or the opinions of others shape how you perceive yourself. With this campaign, Dove is motivating women to take charge of their own self-image, and to redefine what it means to be beautiful.
Beauty should not be a cookie-cutter, “one-size-fits-all” set of criteria that a woman either has or does not have. While the media and the practice of photo-shopping have considerably devalued natural beauty, we need to rise above and question this standard. We must realize that having one particular look is not the only way to fall under the category of “beautiful.” As the doors in this video exemplify, your self-image is in no one else’s hands but your own. Beauty is not a mold you fit into, but a mindset you must create for yourself.
Don’t discredit yourself by settling for just “average.” Choose the “beautiful” door, and embrace beauty in all its forms.
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