Do women know that standards of beauty have been around as long as we have been sentient?

So how can you blame your image issues on magazines and such?Do women know that standards of beauty have been around as long as we have been sentient?
Many years ago, Marilyn Monroe was considered the most gorgeous woman on Earth. By today's standards, she's fat.





Britney's body is still the envy of girls the world over. Now that her abs aren't exactly as tight as they were the last time she performed at the VMAs, she's fat.





A contestant on America's Next Top Model was considerally taller than the average woman, and was also bulimic. Janice Dickinson told her that she looked ';two months pregnant.'; Or, fat.





Those standards have changed a VERY good deal, and the media is to blame. But women should train themselves to ignore it.Do women know that standards of beauty have been around as long as we have been sentient?
It's hard NOT to ';let things affect you'; when you're inundated by them and basically can't escape them no matter where you go. It's called ';culture.'; It's extremely difficult to fight culture because ... you live in it. Report Abuse

No it's difficult for you b/c you are weak. Report Abuse

LMFAO. That's funny. Then I guess every human being on earth is ';weak'; because we're ALL NECESSARILY AFFECTED BY OUR CULTURES. Get over it. Report Abuse

Vwgirl, while women in the art of the Renaissance were certainly not as slender as models of today (the contemporary phenomenon seems to be pretty isolated), the women were generally rather slender.





It is during the Baroque period that we see so many women that would today be labeled ';obese';. And this has more to do with the shift from draughtsmanly to painterly aesthetics than with notions of health or wealth.





Anyone who gave me a thumbs down for just reporting facts about art history needs to get over themselves.
In the renaissance times, bigger women were considered more beautiful. It meant they were healthier.
I think the media and magazines are just a scapegoat. Sure, they present unrealistic images of 'the perfect woman', selecting painfully thin models and airbrushing any blemishes away. But in the end, we all have choice...thats what feminism brought us. We don't have to look at those magazines, and we don't have to be lemmings.





I think its easier to blame others for our lack of self control or our self loathing.
Um. Do you know that standards of beauty are culturally subjective and historically contingent. Try looking at this from a not-totally-Eurocentric point of view. ';Beauty'; means considerably different things to women around the world.





No, unfortunately, the currently popular ';dead corpse'; look has not been men's preferred standard of beauty for ';as long as we've been sentient.';
Mutt,


the bEauty stAndards do cHangE all tHe tiMe


aNd in sOme huMan aNd birD commUnitieS it is


the mAle that muSt attrAct a mAte throUgh beaUty


BUT whAt we sEE in thE mEdia tOday


IS


fAr fRom nAturAl


aNd jUSt as gratuitous viOlenT iMages hAve mAde an imPact oN a kinD of viOlenCe thAt is vEry AmeriKan


stAndard nOtiOns of bEauty strEamlined intO our subconscious aLso mAke an imPact


bUt as RupEr hAs sAid fRom hEr pOsition whiCh is nOT a tEENAge pEER pRessured oNe


we hAve chOiceS





your questiOn is gOOd eVen thO yoU are a hOStiLe mAn pOsing aS a wOmAn





s.Hit yOu mEan youR miNi-nOODle?


nO thAnkS
so I guess you're saying that if you're told over and over again that you're stupid (or not good enough) it won't eventually have an effect (especially on teenage girls)





I know some shrinks who may disagree with you.
Uh, not the same standards, and usually not unrealistic (without major surgery). That is, actual women were themselves standards, not re-touched photos of re-arranged faces and bodies.
The feminist have a problem with attractive/beautiful looking women, that's why.
actually, standards of beauty have changed quite a bit over time, there has always been ';standards'; but they haven't always been the same. additionally, most women didn't have repeated daily exposure (ie, pressure to conform) to those standards the way they do these days, from the media, magazines, etc. the overexposure, in addition to the present ultra-thin (below healthy BMI) standards i feel is damaging to young girls who are just developing their sense of self %26amp; worth. *I* don't personally have any image issues, but it is a problem among the young. girls as young as 7 battle anorexia; even boys struggle with it. i think it even contributes to the obesity to some extent--some kids just totally give up trying to look ';perfect'; so they ';let themselves go'; in a way.





personally, i think healthy should tie into the standards of beauty. then i wouldn't have an issue with the ';overexposure'; to those standards.