In 2010, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported 13.1 million cosmetic procedure and 218,909 of those were performed on boys and girls ages 13-19. Over the years, one of the major issues linking different generations is beauty. Everyone strives to be beautiful, older people strive to look younger and teenagers/young girls strive to look older, it is a vicious cycle. In The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, young Pecola Breedlove strives to become what she was told is beauty, white skin and blue eyes. In the 1940’s and today, young girls are expected to aspire to be beautiful so much they change their appearance even if it can lead to self destruction. Throughout history, there have been women who have been seen as the epitome of beauty
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Idolizing these unrealistic set of standards set by these dolls we are telling young girls that is what you are supposed to look like. This can later cause teenage girls to develop eating disorders, to get plastic surgery, and overall lower self esteem in young girls and teenagers. While some girls become obsessed with the idea of perfection, others are so appalled by it they begin to judge others who are seen as the poster people for beauty. “I couldn’t join their admiration because I hated Shirley” (Morrison 19). Some people link their own insecurities to hatred toward people with the features they most desire. In The Bluest Eye, these young girls are raised in a society where everyone thought beauty was only found in white people. Soon some of them begin to hate white icons such as Shirley Temple because she had what most young girls desired, to be seen as beautiful. As these young girls continue they are swept away by peer pressure and the need for fitting in so much they change their views on certain subjects. “Thus the conversion from pristine sadism to fabricated hatred, to fraudulent love.. I learned much later to worship her” …show more content…
Beauty can cause burdened people to focus on appearance instead of other more important issues in their lives. “Everybody’s jealous. Every time I look at somebody, they look off.” (Morrison 195) Pecola becomes isolated her father and brother leave town. She is oblivious to the fact that it is because her pregnancy and not her new blue eyes. She covers her pain about her father by focusing on her appearance. Often they blame other people for their problems so they do not feel as bad about their situations. “Now she does. Ever since I got my blue eyes, she look away from me all the time. Do you suppose she’s jealous too?” (Morrison 195). In the 90s, a court case was presented where a women went under intense weight loss surgery and lost 150 lbs. Her husband and children said that the surgery not only changed her physical shape but also her personality and outlook on life. She became bitter to her family and they had had enough. She responded by saying they were jealous that she turned her life around. In the quote from the book, Pecola had a similar thought as everyone began to ignore her. The pressure related to beauty can sometimes be to much for some people especially teenagers. "The damage done was total. ... Elbows bent, hands on shoulders, she flailed her arms like a bird in an eternal, grotesquely futile effort to fly. Beating the air, a winged but grounded bird, intent
Idolizing these unrealistic set of standards set by these dolls we are telling young girls that is what you are supposed to look like. This can later cause teenage girls to develop eating disorders, to get plastic surgery, and overall lower self esteem in young girls and teenagers. While some girls become obsessed with the idea of perfection, others are so appalled by it they begin to judge others who are seen as the poster people for beauty. “I couldn’t join their admiration because I hated Shirley” (Morrison 19). Some people link their own insecurities to hatred toward people with the features they most desire. In The Bluest Eye, these young girls are raised in a society where everyone thought beauty was only found in white people. Soon some of them begin to hate white icons such as Shirley Temple because she had what most young girls desired, to be seen as beautiful. As these young girls continue they are swept away by peer pressure and the need for fitting in so much they change their views on certain subjects. “Thus the conversion from pristine sadism to fabricated hatred, to fraudulent love.. I learned much later to worship her” …show more content…
Beauty can cause burdened people to focus on appearance instead of other more important issues in their lives. “Everybody’s jealous. Every time I look at somebody, they look off.” (Morrison 195) Pecola becomes isolated her father and brother leave town. She is oblivious to the fact that it is because her pregnancy and not her new blue eyes. She covers her pain about her father by focusing on her appearance. Often they blame other people for their problems so they do not feel as bad about their situations. “Now she does. Ever since I got my blue eyes, she look away from me all the time. Do you suppose she’s jealous too?” (Morrison 195). In the 90s, a court case was presented where a women went under intense weight loss surgery and lost 150 lbs. Her husband and children said that the surgery not only changed her physical shape but also her personality and outlook on life. She became bitter to her family and they had had enough. She responded by saying they were jealous that she turned her life around. In the quote from the book, Pecola had a similar thought as everyone began to ignore her. The pressure related to beauty can sometimes be to much for some people especially teenagers. "The damage done was total. ... Elbows bent, hands on shoulders, she flailed her arms like a bird in an eternal, grotesquely futile effort to fly. Beating the air, a winged but grounded bird, intent