Sontag’s essay makes a controversial proposal for women, to get a critical distance from the excellence and privilege which is beauty, as a response to the plight of being criticized if you pay too much attention to beauty and if you don’t do it at all. THESIS STATEMENT MISSING
It is easy to see beauty as a form of oppression because women have historically suffered from ridiculous beauty standards. From this point of view, we can understand why Sontag advises women to get distance from what others may consider “beauty”. This reinforces the idea that beauty opposes to intelligence, to women’s capacity and that women only preen themselves for men. Today’s feminism advocates for women to take control of their bodies. This includes accepting the …show more content…
Every individual grows up in a patriarchal society that enforces gender roles and evokes male dominance over women. While it affects both genders, it is the women who suffer the most as it is an unjust system for them. It includes social, political and economic mechanisms, and among them, we can find heteronormative beauty standards. In my opinion, it is not correct to say that men are responsible to a certain extent for the pressure women feel to be conventionally beautiful. Men live under the patriarchy, but they perpetuate it as well.
As it was mentioned, women are taught to follow the rules of our patriarchal society. The oppressed can never take the role of the oppressors. Hence, to blame them for trying to adjust to the imposed beauty standards is pointless. What is up to women is to decide if they want to accommodate themselves in these beauty standards and what is considered to be “feminine”.
In conclusion, Sontag’s proposal, though it is well intended and remotes to one of the most sensitive points of feminism, is nowadays out of date. To feminism, women are free to do whatever they want with their bodies, and that includes being beauty in a traditional way, as long as it is their
It is easy to see beauty as a form of oppression because women have historically suffered from ridiculous beauty standards. From this point of view, we can understand why Sontag advises women to get distance from what others may consider “beauty”. This reinforces the idea that beauty opposes to intelligence, to women’s capacity and that women only preen themselves for men. Today’s feminism advocates for women to take control of their bodies. This includes accepting the …show more content…
Every individual grows up in a patriarchal society that enforces gender roles and evokes male dominance over women. While it affects both genders, it is the women who suffer the most as it is an unjust system for them. It includes social, political and economic mechanisms, and among them, we can find heteronormative beauty standards. In my opinion, it is not correct to say that men are responsible to a certain extent for the pressure women feel to be conventionally beautiful. Men live under the patriarchy, but they perpetuate it as well.
As it was mentioned, women are taught to follow the rules of our patriarchal society. The oppressed can never take the role of the oppressors. Hence, to blame them for trying to adjust to the imposed beauty standards is pointless. What is up to women is to decide if they want to accommodate themselves in these beauty standards and what is considered to be “feminine”.
In conclusion, Sontag’s proposal, though it is well intended and remotes to one of the most sensitive points of feminism, is nowadays out of date. To feminism, women are free to do whatever they want with their bodies, and that includes being beauty in a traditional way, as long as it is their