While on Facebook, I noticed this post from my friend Kyle. The caption states “Barbie’s proportions brought to life: 5’9” 110 lbs 39” bust, 18” waist, 33” hips. So, don’t dream to be Barbie because in reality, she looks like a freak.
That post led me to come up with my theme, which is “Have children toys and movies created unrealistic expectations for beauty?”
Children toys, games, and movies often portray a severly exaggerated version of females. Characters like Laura Croft, shown above has a disproportionately large bust and tiny waist. Disney characters are another great example. A study was done in 1996 to show common gender themes within Disney movies. The study basically found that “beauty equals femaleness.” The Disney characters that held traits such as beauty, grace, and charm ultimately lived a happy and fulfilled life. The women in these Disney fairy tales that did not posses these traits never found happiness.
Here we have some real life examples of these beauty expectations pushed to the extreme. Advertisers often encourage this perception of beauty. Although these expectations may start at an early age, they continue way into adulthood. If anything the pressure for the “perfect body” and “beautiful face” is even more prevalent.Pictured to the left is Ukrainian model Valeria Lukvanova, who went to extremes with surgery to be come the “perfect female.” She is now known as the “Human Barbie,” and has been featured in numerous magazine publications.
Campaigns have been created to counteract these unrealistic expectations though. Dove created a campaign known as “Campaign For Real Beauty,” which is a series of ads consisting of real women of all different shapes, ages, and ethnicities. The campaign tries to show that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. The campaign was a success and created quite a bit of positive media attention. So yes, I believe that unrealistic beauty expectations do start at a young age from children's toys and movies, and then they continue even further into adulthood. But I do believe that we are taking steps in the right direction to curb these unrealistic beauty perceptions.
