Personal Narrative: A Look In The Mirror

What do you see when you look in the mirror? Are you pleased, or do you immediately come up with an endless list of insecurities? As a child one of my favorite memories was laying around the house with my older sister on rainy days. We would leave the windows open so we could hear the rain coming down on the tin roof over our patio, while watching reruns of our favorite tv show “America's Next Top Model”. I always thought that these women were gorgeous and I would catch myself constantly comparing their looks to my own. I wanted to be just like them until I realized the unrealistic expectations that they had to live up to. A sizeable butt and breasts, but not too large; they have got to be proportional. A skinny waist, impeccable hair, blemish free face although even with clear skin you are expected to cake on makeup because no one is actually pretty without mile long eyelashes, the perfect smoky eye, and exemplary contouring. Society has idolized these things as “beautiful” and shamed the girls that do not meet these standards; however, society should be making everyone feel confident in their bodies. Girls need to know that it is okay not to have an “hourglass figure” so they don’t
spend their whole life harming themselves trying to achieve something so unimportant. ABC news does a story on the “#DontJudgeChallenge” where teens intentionally make themselves appear “ugly” by marking on their face and exaggerating facial features that are known to be less attractive like pimples, scars, glasses and thick unibrows. In the second half of the video they're all made up with their makeup caked on and their hair all done. The trend started off as a protest against body shaming, trying to make a statement about people judging others on their looks when that is exactly what they're doing. ““When you do things like beauty shaming, you’re still focusing on someone’s external world and you’re really not getting to know somebody,” Ajmere added.” The most significant part of this video is not even the part where they're trying to look less attractive, it's what they do to themselves to feel beautiful.
17 year old Abigail voiced her opinion about the challenge on twitter. “The ‘Don’t Judge Challenge’ is so stupid. You’re making it seem like people who wear glasses, who have acne, who don’t have good eyebrows are ugly and unattractive. It makes no sense” she consolidates. Then others started taking a stand. They would make a challenge where in the first half of the video they had their makeup done, as well as their hair and everything else others were doing to themselves in the second portion of the original “Don’t judge challenge”. This time to end the video they remove the makeup, put their hair up, and or leave it
natural. The challenge was supposed to be a protest against body shaming. It was supposed to make people feel beautiful, and while it may have made them feel that way for the 15 seconds in the video where they were compared to some unrealistic features that no one actually has, it didnt last for long. The point that was trying to be illustrated is that you shouldn't have to wear tons of makeup or have your hair done to feel beautiful. It shouldn't be about the external things because that is not what makes you, you. And while society continues to make it seem like this people are going to continue to use that mindset. While society keeps idolizing these girls with these unrealistic body types and features, people are going to continue to think that is what they need to feel beautiful.