The readings for the week made me start to consider the effects of the norms our society has constructed. Concepts like “normal” and “freak” are relative terms created by our society that have had a profound effect on the way we perceive ourselves and other people in comparison. Stereotyping, racism, sexism and underestimation are all bi-products of the concept of being either “normal” or “different.” The human need to categorize and the term “Normalcy” have shaped our societal values in such an extreme way that people now choose to endure life threatening procedures, all for the sake of getting closer to the American stereotype of “beauty.” In 2010, over 9.5 million cosmetic (surgical and non-surgical) procedures were performed. This number is much higher than I initially expected it to be. The increasing pressure for people to reach this physical concept of “American beauty” not only drives people to alter their physical appearance, but it also has supported the idea that people can and should “design” their children. The genetic selectiveness initially was intended to ensure an infant’s health and well-being, but now it is becoming a trend for parents to construct an ideal physical appearance for their off-spring. This to me is an alarming and un-natural practice that in essence could ultimately create a new form of discrimination and segregate practices between the new class of “designed” humans and those humans of natural conception/formation.
Allison Brady
Allie,
ReplyDeleteWe will be discussing body modification at length later in the semester. We will also be questions whether the choice to undergo cosmetic surgery is always the result of an individual internalizing society's norms and thus feeling as if they have to "fix" themselves, or whether the decision is more complex...