Uglies Tally Youngblood, By Scott Westerfeld

“It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness.” Leo Tolstoy, The Kreutzer Sonata. In Scott Westerfelds novel Uglies Tally Youngblood wants to have a legally required surgery that will make her pretty. In the process she gets caught up in a rebellion against society and comes to appreciate a world where not everyone is pretty. However in an ironic twist she has to turn herself in to the authorities to be turned pretty. If one glances at a magazine or turns on the TV, you got a good idea of what media’s definition of an attractive woman looks like: she’s tall, has long, flowing hair, is surgically and digitally enhanced, blemish-free, and very thin. In fact, academic research tells it like we see it: studies show the women we see in media these days are much thinner than the real world, and very often thin enough to be considered anorexic by world health standards. In a world where a constant flow of media images far exceeds the number of people we could ever see face to face, this abnormally thin and digitally enhanced ideal has become the norm. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld highlights the controversial topic of
how society can be dominated by superficiality, establishing unrealistic standards for beauty, and the way people have been brainwashed into thinking pretty is superior.
During the time between the last half of the nineteenth century and the first two decades of the twentieth century, America’s perception of beauty has drastically changed. We can see an example of our past versions of beauty standards in a passage from the book Uglies: <> It’s amazing to see how plainly two characters discuss the ageless beauty of Cleopatra when they are in a time that only cares about surgical cosmetic enhancements forced upon their government to look the same. In the last century women have actively been striving for the slim, youthful figures of Hollywood’s most famous stars and adopted similar fashions to convey their beauty and appeal. Sensing the growing importance of beauty among the women of the early twentieth century, advertisements began pushing products and methods to help women achieve such ideals. Cosmetic surgery has become relatively common among the general public, offering more drastic results that commercial products cannot. This desperate quest for beauty and youth was made more important as society recognizes attractiveness as the key to success in nearly every aspect of life, casting an undeniable new light of competition and vanity upon twentieth century America.
Nevertheless evidence suggests that we have very good reason to worry about our looks. In the novel it is stated that: <> The book is exposing the fact that in the future extreme measures will have been taken to secure the absolute indifference when it comes to who gets better benefits in life. Your appearance wouldn’t be a deciding factor because then everyone would look the same.
According to scientific research, people deemed beautiful have certain advantages in life. It starts early, when cute babies receive extra attention from caregivers compared to more ordinary looking babies. Beautiful children tend to be teachers' pets, and good looks seem to help us get ahead in the workplace. Economists estimate that attractive women earn four percent more than their less attractive counterparts, while handsome men make five percent more. That means that over a lifetime, a good-looking man could earn $250,000 more than a less attractive one. This is a counterfeit, dangerous, unattainable norm. However, we play by the rules set by society and we follow what it sets to be the norm. In other words, people settle for mediocrity in their day-to-day lives, giving better-looking people an advantage.
Our natural drive toward the aesthetically pleasing indicates beauty is inarguably one of the most gratifying features of the human experience. Critics argued that not only was “performing a dangerous operation on a healthy body in the name of beauty” immoral and unethical, it had no place in the respected field of medicine. This hesitation was soon discarded as the twentieth century has become consumed with youth and beauty. This includes people having nose jobs or breast implants just because they weren’t happy. We should keep cosmetic surgery on the side for when real problems that affect your health emerge.
Fortunately, changes are trying to be made in the way beauty is perceived.
Dove is a pioneer in this field of pairing ads and empowerment. Their Campaign for Real Beauty, which launched in 2004, ditched models in favor of real women—with a range of happy, confident women with very real body types. CoverGirl, has created pro-female ad campaigns. Some of them are even initiating dialogue about the status quo. From things as commercialized as fine art to popular culture, beauty practically always takes first place. Needless to say, countless people owe their professional and financial success to their charmingly good looks. It’s a well-known fact that being attractive gets you through the door in most social settings. Society should start making more image conscious campaigns promoting self love and demonstrating that beauty isn’t
everything.
Even though the human image has been subjected to all manner of manipulation, in an attempt to create an ideal that does not seem to have a human incarnation, society can still prevent further distortion of the truth about beauty. The media has always dictated what we should perceive as beautiful, handsome and attractive, leading to a society where the entire nation feels pressured to aspire to that. That pressure can lead to or exacerbate self-esteem issues, anxiety, depression, eating disorders and a host of other mental health issues. Together as people we must remember that what we do, the way an individual thinks, makes them beautiful. And stop thinking that pretty is just a superficial physical term of superiority.