The
Unattainable
T
he little girl in the adjoining dressing room could not have been older than eleven. Her features reminded me of my own when I was that age, wide-eyed with unbrushed hair and rosy cheeks. And she possessed the precious combination of short and stout, unique to prepubescent girls. She was shopping for her upcoming birthday party, and I watched her pupils expand as the sales associate placed a training bra and bedazzled purple dress into her palms. She ripped the items off the hanger, eager to embrace her princess fairy tale and threw the dressing room curtains together. Suddenly invested in her personal fashion show, I waited to see her smile widen as she stepped out from behind the drapes. Yet the look of pure joy never came. Her wide eyes spilled silent tears that streamed down her face to her quivering upper lip. And as she threw herself into the comfort of her mother’s arms she explained how the mirror humiliated her, screaming how she looked fat in her party dress. Between gasps for air she asked, “Why don’t I look like the girls on TikTok?” My heart broke at this moment. To witness the contrast between trying on a training bra and the pressures of imposed beauty standards felt immoral. Even at a young age, the impact of an ideal body image is not only present, but life-altering. While heightened by the emergence of social media, this pressure to conform to a particular beauty standard is not a novel concept. Beginning our journey through history, ancient Greece (500300 B.C.E.) demonstrates an emphasis on imposed beauty ideals. Statue remnants depict full-bodied figures, with weight typically signifying wealth and a well-fed stomach—an
Nature of beauty unattainable look for the vast majority during this time period. Interestingly, ancient Grecians cared little for the female form, worshiping male bodies above all else. Female bodies were under pressure to appear increasingly masculine, an early example of how the male sex has historically played a role in shaping the ideal feminine form. In addition to bodily proportions, facial symmetry was of the utmost importance in terms of beauty. The ancient Greeks emphasized the Golden Ratio, a specific geometric formula considered the most pleasing to the eye. While this formula was initially utilized in Greek architecture, the concept of perfection in balance and symmetry materialized in human faces. Due to this, unibrows were considered an image of lust, so much so that women who were unable to grow their brows would apply black powder to create the appearance of one. Ancient Greece marks a period on this historical timeline in which elements of female beauty, including body and face structure, are solely determined by external forces.
by Melissa Dash
Artifacts from ancient Greece also demonstrate the belief that fair-skinned women were considered more beautiful. This racist distinction, however, did not begin nor end in 500 B.C.E. Roughly at the turn of the 15th century, European colonizers began traveling around the world, introducing the notion of white supremacy in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Lighter skin was associated with high class distinctions, for only rich women could afford not to work outside in the sun. This led to the cosmetic procedure of skin lightening or skin bleaching, which reduces the concentration of melanin in the skin. Some women would even poison themselves in the name of beauty, using arsenic to lighten their complexion and mercury and lead for eye makeup. Moving far ahead into the Victorian Era (1837-1901), the superiority of light skin and symmetry prevailed. This time period marked the height of female oppression. Manifesting in fashion, the corset became one of the most notable examples of how the female body has been tortured and contorted in the name of beauty. Corsets bruised the ribcage, squeezing internal organs in an attempt to achieve a slim silhouette beneath luxurious gowns. Skeletal remains indicate the deformity of ribs and misaligned spines. As the fascination with slim waists emerged, beauty industries profited immensely, advertising social status above comfort. While boned corsets were eventually abandoned due to ever-changing body ideals, the obsession with an hourglass figure migrated to the United States, and its influence has pervaded the present day. At the turn of the 20th century, body image ideals began changing at a rapid pace. Each decade introduced something new in beauty and fashion trends, and so the ideal womanly shape changed from year to year. The roaring ‘20s
