Beauty has been desired by women throughout the ages. Beauty is the thing that attracts men. Beauty opens doors that are closed to the ‘non-beautiful’. Eve of the Old Testament was the beautiful temptress. Delilah and Cleopatra each used their beauty to wield power over men.
Although, women have always wanted to be beautiful, ideas about looks have changed over time. In Victorian England it was considered a thing of beauty to have milky white skin that would be considered too pale by today’s standards. Women preserved their whiteness by staying out of the sun and limiting the time they went outside. Only the working class who toiled in all weathers had ‘ruddy’ skin which today might be described as a tan.
It is no longer paler skin that is considered beautiful. Rather, the converse has become true with a suntan being a requisite for modern beauty. The sun tan lotion industry is booming as suntanning is is now an important element of a woman’s beauty regime. If the sun fails then there is always the tanning booths where the same effect can be achieved.
Unfortunately, the European concept of beauty was not good news for everyone. As these ideals spread to America it was a blow to the self esteem to women of colour. They would go to extraordinary lengths in order to achieve lighter looking skin and in some countries, bleaching has persisted right up till today. However, the 1970′s brought ushered in the ‘black beauty’ concept and from then onwards, beauty has become achievable for everyone in America regardless of race and complexion.
Today things have changed drastically. Anyone regardless of race can be considered beautiful. Indeed, some of the modern beauty icons are black women including Tyra Banks, Halle Berry and Michelle Obama. Beauty relies much more on a clear complexion and youthful skin. There are certain standards that must be reached to possess Hollywood style good looks. These include bright white teeth, perfect but understated cosmetics and a wardrobe to befit.
A girl can have the most amazing looking face in the world but if she’s overweight then she is not considered beautiful. Since the days of corseted dresses women have sought to be slim or appear slimmer than they are in order to achieve optimum beauty. Corsets were tied so tight that in some cased damaged the woman’s structure permanently. Today, dieting pills and weight loss programs have taken over where the corset left off.
A multi-million dollar weight loss industry has been spurned by women’s desires to be skinnier and more gorgeous. Also fashions have also evolved to reflect the smaller beauty ideal. In the 1960′s it was the mini skirt to show of toned legs and thighs. Today it is the belly top with a woman’s midriff exposed to show her flat and toned abs.
If you try to fit in with modern ideals of beauty then you know that age is perhaps the biggest obstacle to overcome. Youth and looks go hand in hand. There is no room for mature or wrinkled looking skin. Middle aged women are only celebrated for their beauty if they have managed to remain younger looking than their years. A massive industry exists to help women pursue this crucial element of beauty and where anti-aging products fail, make up and plastic surgery might possibly provide the solution for today’s beauty conscious women.
