The Distortion of Beauty
This popular ad from personal care company Dove and their new Campaign for Real Beauty does an excellent job of revealing how photos of models and celebrities are drastically modified — fueling unrealistic expectations in girls and guys.
UPDATE: Some wise words from Carolyn Mahaney at GirlTalk:
To think that women are striving to look like someone who doesn’t even look like herself. It’s absurd!
The Dove Campaign got it partially right—the fashion industry has certainly contributed to a distorted perception of beauty. And yet, their solution—“every girl deserves to feel beautiful just the way she is”—is well-meaning and yet fundamentally unbiblical.
You see, women believe that physical beauty will make them happy, successful, popular among the women, desirable to the men – so they pursue it with a fury!
Physical beauty, however, does not deliver as advertised. Proverbs 31:30 reveals the falsehood and the futility of this quest for beauty: Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain.
Even if every girl did “feel beautiful just the way she is,” it wouldn’t bring her true joy or lasting happiness or solve even one of her problems.
October 27th, 2006 at 7:14 am
Wise words. I think, though, that there is a danger in going to far the other way. God created beauty. He wants us to look our best. That gets distorted (as in the ad). But on the other side you have people who purposely don’t do basic cosmetic things, and dress anti-fashionably, and they have the same goal as the person who is getting all sorts of “beauty enhancement”. They are focusing on getting approval from others.
God accepts us as we are, and then gives us grace to gently push us toward becoming like Him. We should focus on being vessels for God, and pleasing Him, not others.
October 27th, 2006 at 7:56 am
God created beauty and everyone is beautiful in their own way. Growing up with a former beautician (my mom). I have learned a lot about make-up, hair, the fashion industry etc. My mom has taught me that beauty first begins in the heart. You can be the most beautiful person on the outside, but if you are ugly on the inside, it makes you very unattractive. However, you can be no very attractive on the outside and have a beautiful and sweet spirit and everyone will think your the most beautiful person.
Thanks guys for the video. I think it’s really cool. I have seen it before and thought it was a great example of the high expectations that are placed on women today.
October 27th, 2006 at 10:38 am
Wow. That’s amazing. I’ve seen stuff like that before and it never fails to both impress me with technology, and depress me with what they do with that ability.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:06 am
You’re right, Will. Any attempt to derive our value from the approval of others is flawed. At the same time, it’s important to note that the balance is not between the distortion seen in the video and those who make no attempt to look and dress in a pleasant and attractive manner. The distorted perception of beauty seen on magazine covers, movies and the like is outside the realm of reality.
October 27th, 2006 at 11:46 am
Wow, I saw the video on girltalk and have watched it several times, but it never ceases to amaze me. It’s awful how much we strive to be beautiful like people in ads and they don’t even look like themselves! I agree with Allie, it impresses and depresses me. Thanks for the article!
October 27th, 2006 at 1:20 pm
In some ways it is almost comical that they probably pay their models out the wazooos and then they still have to go and pay people to distort them. Wow.
October 27th, 2006 at 2:07 pm
I am a Girl Scout leader and this is one of things that I do not like about Girl Scouts. It is about the Dove company being partners with the Girl Scouts. I do not want an argument about Girl Scouts because there are some weird things about the program but as Christian who is a leader I can pick and choose what the girls learn and talk about in our troop.
October 27th, 2006 at 4:07 pm
The world is so fixated on what people look like on the ouside and not what the heart looks like. So many people judge each other by what they see when someone walks into a room not even bothering to get to know them. Were as God ,who knows us better than anyone else, loves us and cares for us!
October 27th, 2006 at 4:48 pm
Wow, how true that is. It just goes to show how many young people these days strive to stay in style with the latest rave. It is all about being “hip”. A great reminder for me to not have that as my goal, but to have Christ’s best for me as my goal. Thanks for the great post.
October 28th, 2006 at 8:17 am
One thing I’ve noticed is that true “1 Peter 3:4 beauty” actually radiates outward; I’ve met some people who at first I didn’t think of as particularly attractive, but as I got to know them and their love for the Lord and all things good and right, those qualities really glowed all over. Now I consider those few girls some of the most strikingly beautiful people I know. The light in their eyes is really something special.
October 28th, 2006 at 2:22 pm
My brother used to say, “I’ve never met a beautiful woman. I know quite a few.”
October 28th, 2006 at 6:19 pm
How funny that I would find this on your site… I just posted it on my own blog. This video truly shows how superficial our culture truly is. It’s sad that we’ve grown so accustomomed to “fake” that we can’t even enjoy what’s true anymore. And we’re missing out. So sad. So shocking. Thank you for posting this.
October 28th, 2006 at 6:27 pm
Wow wow! Definitely um… revealing, not to mention challenging! It’s so true, that “women are striving to look like someone who doesn’t even look like herself.” It’s something that I think we all know deep down, but popular culture etc. is yelling so loud that all other thoughts seem to somehow get crowded out. Thanks for sharing!
October 28th, 2006 at 7:03 pm
I use to where make-up but decided to stop when I got older. By putting on make-up you are telling God : ” I don’t like the way you made me, you didnt do it right so I’m going to change ( inhance) it . God made you the way he wants you.To try and “inhance”
it is saying God made a mistake, and He dosnt do that!!!!!!!!
October 29th, 2006 at 6:32 pm
I don’t think that it is a sin to wear makeup, but it is wonderful if a young woman feels comfortable enough with herself to wear very little - or even none at all. Putting on too
much makeup, in an effort to CREATE a pretty face, is a sign of insecurity; using certain
techniques to ENHANCE God-given, natural attractiveness and unique, individual features
(eyes, nose, smile, hair, etc.) is perfectly acceptable, in my opinion.
I personally enjoy being able to really dress up once in a while; I love feeling feminine
and pretty, when I can!
Thank you for posting the video; I need to be reminded of the fact that the pictures of
the nearly perfect women I see in most advertisements are not a reflection of reality.
October 30th, 2006 at 10:15 am
Every Sunday morning, after he is ready for church and waiting on the rest of us, dad will watch Sunday news programs (Such as, “Meet the Press”, and “Sunday Today”) to get caught up on what’s going on in the world. Anyway, this past Sunday they were talking about this very video. It was really interesting. One thing that stood out was when they said, there is no surgery that can make your eyeballs bigger and your neck longer!
October 30th, 2006 at 11:11 am
After all the trouble they went to, she still doesn’t end up looking beautiful!
October 30th, 2006 at 11:30 am
While I think the GirlTalk article has a point, I would like to point out that the Dove Campaign says it is “The Self-Esteem Fund.” I think they are trying to point out fact that girls shouldn’t feel inadequate just because they don’t look like supermodels. Beauty isn’t just about outward appearances. I believe they are trying to point out fact that everyone is beautiful in their own way, whether physically or not.
The Dove Campaign, in my opinion, is trying to help others, especially girls, establish self-acceptance, which, in my experience, has been essential to my walk with Christ.
October 30th, 2006 at 1:26 pm
Wow! I’ve seen this video before, and it perfectly illustrated what I’ve been saying for years: we don’t look as good as the models in magazines because the models themselves don’t really look like that - no one does! Ever watch an old movie and really look at the actors and, especially, the actresses? They didn’t look nearly as perfect as people have to today. Beauty has become distorted in our media. Married women, regardless of how many (or few) kids they have, have to be slim, fit, and have a perfect complection in order to be attractive. Single women have to be all that and then dress like strange women on top of that. It’s shameful and disturbing. Emily (previous poster) is right: women need to realize that it doesn’t make us inadequate if we don’t look like supermodels. They are “gold covered garbage cans” - beautiful on the outside, full of junk on the inside. It is the character of a woman that makes her beautiful: her purity, gentleness, sweetness, faith, service…those are the things that make a woman beautiful. That said, though, there is nothing wrong with a lady fixing herself up to look pretty. The Bible doesn’t say not to - it says not to be focused on and obsessed with our outward appearance. But it’s a good testimony to look neat, clean, and modestly pretty.
October 31st, 2006 at 11:26 am
Everytime I see this video, I remain amazed by how technology can make everything “better.” Growing up, my mother always told me that the models I saw in magazines and elsewhere were not realistic. I never believed her, so I always tried to be like every magazine model. I finally understood what beauty really was in the past year or so.
Here at college, I see young women who are obsessed with image and being this kind of “perfection,” but have become the imperfect version of themselves. Hopefully, more campaigns for “real beauty” will emerge, encouraging what is true and wonderful.
Every person deserves the right to know and accept the fact that they are beautiful when they are the healthy version of themself.
November 10th, 2006 at 12:32 am
As compelling as the video is I don’t think any woman or girl doesn’t realize they cake on the makeup and hair products to make models look pretty. It’s been done since the beginning of time. I think as Christians we need to ask ourselves how much time and effort we are putting into the superficial and what’s our motivation. Being pretty isn’t a sin, but there’s a lot in scripture about immodesty.
November 14th, 2006 at 1:09 pm
As a mother, grandmother of females, thank-you. Great video. Great message from Ms. Mahaney.
I was raised with putting my ‘best foot forward’ as in taking some time to appear ‘well put together’ for worshipping God i.e. church, and work. Coming from a military household looking well put together was a normal, routine part of life.
As with all things in regard to how we live on earth as Christians, followers of Jesus Christ as our Saviour, it is how excessively we choose to prepare ourselves to leave our homes. How excessive our adornment whether it be hair, make-up, jewelry, dress.
Mothers today have a big task ahead of them in raising the next generation. The world today is dictating more and more the NEED for making physical changes to our bodies and dressing more & more risque. Young women (young girls!) looking older than they really are.
We always need to consider what would Jesus think of the way we choose to look when we leave our homes and whom are we trying to really please. Whose eye are we really trying to catch?
Loretta
December 2nd, 2006 at 6:45 pm
my bible class and i watched this video last week. i think it shows us that no one is perfect. the person at the end of the video does not exist but the person at the beggining does. God created us just the way we are and we are all perfect in his eyes.
December 3rd, 2006 at 7:15 pm
I totally agree w/ all the comments here….the pressure on young women (including my daughter) is overwhelming and I believe comes MUCh too early these days…..what a shame….
On another note…..being a portrait photographer, this program amazes me! This is one I have NEVER seen! The way they are developing technology is un-real! Used in the right situations it could be absolutely resourceful…..leading young women into a false role model I do not believe qualifies as resourceful…
February 3rd, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Elizabeth Berg…
I see you have some nice information about music and entertainment….
February 22nd, 2007 at 3:04 pm
I think that video, ina way, is really very sad because it shows how much emphasis our culture is putting on outside beauty. God made everyone unique, so no matter how pretty or ugly they may be on the outside, they are beautiful in HIS sight, which is what truly matters. God looks at the inside, not the outside!!
March 16th, 2007 at 7:57 pm
i can’t agree more with Olivia and Lane! it’s so true! i’ve met numerous people who i instantly thought were beautiful on the outside, and then when i got to know them they either became even more beautiful to me or less, depending on their personality, character, and inner beauty (or lack thereof). on the other hand, there are soooo many people i’ve met that i didn’t think were physically so remarkable upon first meeting them. then the more i got to know them, it was like something inside of them was visibly shining through and they became so beautiful in my eyes! i should be used to it by now, but it never fails to amaze me every time it happens. its funny cuz now i see these people who the world would probably consider average to be the most beautiful people ever (yes, physically too!) and i find myself so attracted to them because of the beauty that just radiates from within them.
March 23rd, 2007 at 11:55 am
WOW… I can’t do that, I want that software…. I think before long people will just give up on photoshopping images of models and make their own with the computers… If you type in ‘computer generated people’ (no quotation marks and nothing inappropriate comes up on the first results page as of 30 seconds ago) the first image that comes up in the results is one of a completely computer-generated girl wearing a yellow shirt. It’s amazing.
April 11th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
For a long time women have been in search of liberation, and yet today we are more in bondage than ever. We are slaves to the endless pursuit of physical perfection, we have bought into the lie that our value comes from our appearance. Its time women begin to stand up and be true women of beauty and refuse to bow under the pressure to be physically perfect. Its time to celebrate true beauty that comes from a godly heart, and a life submitted to Christ. If we don’t start taking a stand we are going to lose the next generation of women. I am priviledged to work with children and the effects of the photoshopped magazine covers on young girls is devastating, they don’t know its not real or attainable. I will never forget the morning when I found Hayley sobbing and refusing to go to school, the reason she said she didn’t look like the cover of a magazine. The real tragedy, she was only ten. Our daughters are losing their childhood, and being robbed of their innocence because we as women have allowed society to dictate what beauty is, I think its time we stand up and tell them the truth.
April 25th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Amazing video. Very thought provoking.
I agree that most of your listed reasons (”women believe that physical beauty will make them … successful, popular among the women, desirable to the men “) are dangerous, however, I think that many women fix up merely because they like to- much in the same way that they would decorate a cake or their living room. The process is fun and the end result is visually appealing.
Is there anything wrong with that?
April 25th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
I watched the video again, and on second thought, that girl was extremely beautiful BEFORE she was photoshopped. She actually transformed less than many women I know when they fix their hair and makeup every day.
I think you might want to discuss hairstyles and makeup next, in the interest of consistency…
August 2nd, 2007 at 9:39 am
There is a saying (but I don’t know who said it first) that goes: “Pretense becomes reality” , but I don’t think that’s the case when it comes to beauty. We can dress ourselves up and paint ourselves up with makeup to look pretty, but it is still just a facade; its not reality… the reality is we are who we are, and superficial beauty is just skin deep.
~ Elisabeth J. Gruber
August 7th, 2007 at 11:59 am
I just wonder if a woman id feminine and pure, and all the things that you say is right for me…but if I am not physically attractive and FAT.
Out of ALL the sites and blogs I have been on about the issue of female modesty and traditional feminity, I am very upset that everyone igmores the fat girls in this!
We CAN’T show our midriffs, we are forever tryting to hide our bodies! FAT girls are by default “modest” because we we are covering up our FAT along with our assets.
And guess what? i am 28 and still have never been approched by a nice guy. You know why? Because the good Christain guys are always chasing THIN MODEL TYPE girls no matter if they are modest or not.
And I have been obese since I was 8 years old, a severe eating disorder. I just get so angry that no matter where I go in the Chirstian community, I will always be invisible. Either because I am FAT, or poor, or African American, or have no family.
I want to get married and be a wife and mom! And although i don’t want to give up my modesty, I have to say this….. Where are the good Chirsatian guys that are not shallow? They TALK a good game to appear all Christain, but show me a young man who will profess his love and court a large, modest, feminine girl like me? Hmmmm……?
August 7th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
Dear Moderators,
I came back today to see that my post was not posted yet. I would like to have a reason why you a Chirstian site have silnced the fat Christian girl. I had a feeling you would not put up my post. I would like to know why my post was rejected. It’s a shame what is happening to Chirsitanity even on line. I am truly dissapointed=(
August 7th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
How come no one talks about the cruelty put on fat girls even when they are modest? Doe s anyone know where i can get info on this subject?
August 7th, 2007 at 6:27 pm
Dear Dawn,
Your comments are now up. They weren’t ever rejected. The problem was that because we receive literally hundreds of spam comments everyday, our spam filter will sometimes accidentally filter a legitimate comment. That’s what happened with yours. We manually go through all the spam comments every day so we don’t miss any real ones, but we can’t always get to it immediately. We’re very sorry for the delay.
Regarding your comment, let me be the first to apologize for the shallowness of so many Christian guys who talk one way and act another. Let me encourage you, femininity and purity are not based on body type or physical attractiveness. The judge isn’t shallow Christian guys (or girls, for that matter). The person whose opinion of us matters is God. If you are seeking to walk in purity and biblical womanhood before Him, He will honor that, whether in this life or the glorious one to come.
Remember that you have a God who is a Father to the fatherless, who doesn’t care about your weight or your ethnicity or whether you have a lot of money. He loves you. Jesus Christ is our bridegroom and you, as a member of His church, are His bride. Rest in His love, sister!
The Lord bless you!
In Christ,
Alex Harris
August 11th, 2007 at 12:07 am
Alex,
Oh I am so sorry! When I hit the refresh button I thought my post was up then taken down because I saw it up. I just get so emotional when i leave comments on these blogs you know? god has shown me a a major revalation in this area of my life and I just wanted to put my truth out there. Please forgive me for being a bit upset. I have given my life to Chirst and I just want to bring attention to things i NEVER hear about in Church. i think it is really important that the common things we go thru on our walk with God should not be ignored. I belive that this is the ministry that God is leading me to and as you can see he still has a lot of work to do on me!!!lol
But I do love this site and what you have done here especailly the Survey. I apprecite your warm reply.
Humbly,
Dawn Solomon
September 30th, 2007 at 11:49 am
I had seen thay video on another site and i found it very interesting.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
I have never seen this video before but the concept is definitely true. Every girl wants to feel beautiful in someones eyes and many times seek the wrong attention from the wrong eyes.It is truly amazing when you realize that no matter what you look like you are breahtakingly beautiful in the eyes of your Heavenly Father. Although this video gives a good message ; it only scratches the surface. Our hearts need to be beautiful. My thinking on this topic was completely changed when I read the book “Authentic Beauty” by: Leslie Ludy. I realize there are a lot of girls who blog on here, and I definitely recommend the book. It digs so deep into God’s love for us, and is a true eye-opener.
Your Sister in Christ,
Brianna
November 26th, 2007 at 4:34 pm
WOW!!! I know I am really late leaving a reply for this one, but that was really interesting! I also wanted to back up what Brianna M. said about Authentic Beauty. I also enjoyed this book written by a woman who is truly beautiful (inside and out).
Tiffany
December 12th, 2007 at 9:04 am
okay.. first of all god didn’t create beauty…you look how you do becaue of your parents. second to will…why should we only please “god” and not others? shouldn’t we want to make others happy as well? hard-core christians make me laugh.
May 1st, 2008 at 9:55 am
Wow! I had never seen this before. I knew they put a ton of makeup on these models…but computer distortion! Amazing video. It’s a sick world. I’m going to share this with others. Thanks!
May 29th, 2008 at 10:04 am
That’s really amazing how they can make some okay looking girl into a beautiful girl.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
Wow! That is totally awesome! I love the part where Carolyn Mahaney says “To think that women are striving to look like someone who doesn’t even look like herself. It’s absurd!” It’s so true! Alot of girls I know are trying to be stick thin like the models or look as beautiful as them. So they dye their hair like every month and wear clothes that are way too small to be made for them. Its awesome that a mainstream company like Dove is at least getting part of the message across. That the models don’t even look like the pictures of themselves!
Thanks for putting this up here!
July 4th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
I thought this ad was pretty nifty when I saw it, but I don’t entirely agree with its point. For me, physical insecurity has never come from looking at models or celebrities. It’s come from seeing my friends, co-workers, and classmates who just happen to be beautiful in real life.
We could get rid of all the beauty discrepancies in the media, but every girl in America would still have to decide whether or not they would be defined by outer appearances, or by the heart.