Searching For Beauty Over The Years
Posted on February 8, 2010
Filed Under Fitness |
Beauty, though quite abstract, has been highly sought after by women for decades. Beauty has been seen as a vehicle to happiness throughout history. Most of the women who are considered icons of the past are mostly remembered for their looks. Cleopatra, Marie Antoinette and Marilyn Monroe, are to name but a few.
Concepts of beauty have evolved over time even though the desire to be glamorous has remained the same as always. In the past, European women carried parasols whenever they went outdoors. These were not just a fashion accessory but had the very functional purpose of keeping the sun off the woman’s skin in order to preserve her youthful skin. White skin was the ideal; any hint of a tan was considered lower class and decidedly unbecoming. Women would pinch their cheeks in order to make them look rosy as was considered pretty at the time.
Today, the modern counterparts of these women crave the sun as the sun-kissed look is now considered gorgeous. There is a huge business in tanning lotions for sunbathing and there is also a huge rise in tanning studios for when there is no sun to bathe in.
European ideals of beauty became Western ideals and very quickly got tied up with race and natural complexion. Black women were in the unenviable position of never being able to match up to the beauty standards. They would bleach their skins in order to look a little more white and a little more beautiful. The ‘black beauty’ movement of the 1970’s challenged the pre-existing beauty norm and went a long way in changing the African-American concept of themselves and their beauty.
Today concepts of beauty are far less associated with skin colour or ethnicity. Some of the world’s most celebrated celebs are women of colour including Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Halle Berry and the first African-American First Lady, Michelle Obama. The beauty conscious are not concerned with trying to look lighter but with trying to look younger and possess clear complexions devoid of blemishes, acne and age spots. Teeth must be very white and makeup must be understated and natural looking.
Weight has long since been very tied up with a woman’s beauty. It is not acceptable to be seen as heavy in Western society and this has been the case since the days of corseted dresses. Women were bound up in these contraptions in order to look thinner. Today the diet products and services are a multi-billion dollar industry as women seek weight loss in an effort to look thinner and more appealing.
Fashion has always been the partner of the beauty industry. Today, girls are supposed to have flat toned stomachs and fashions that reflect this. Hip cut skirts and belly revealing tops can only be worn by those who fit the modern beauty ideal.
Age seems to have everything to do with the modern concept of beauty. In order to be pretty you must look young. This is one of the hardest things to keep up with for the beauty conscious individual. There are literally thousands of anti aging skin care products that claim to help women restore their lost beauty through rejuvenation of young looking skin. Most simply don’t work while others are marginally more effective. For girls for whom being pretty is everything, there is always the cosmetic surgery option.
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