Controversies Blog

The controversy over the impact of images is one that can have a very wide variety of opinions. The controversy reveals how magazines define people, particularly woman, as having the perfect body. Magazine models are normally 5’11 and weigh 120 lbs. Whereas, the average American woman is 5’4 and weighs 144 lbs. Magazine models also have perfect proportions, and flawless golden tan skin. My stand on this issue is that the models should not look this way. To begin with, the models themselves are probably not getting the nutrition that their body needs because they must have to starve themselves to get that certain appearance. Secondly, American women think that in order to be beautiful, they have to fit into this model’s appearance. Therefore, they have overwhelming guilt thrown on them when they give into the huge donut advertisement leading them to the fresh baked glazed donuts. This is showing that our marketing strategies as a society are contradictory. Companies are telling us to eat more and more food, but expecting us to have smaller and smaller waistlines. It just won’t work! The result is consumers who have poor self- esteem and frustration. Men are not excluded from this model. Men are portrayed as having extremely muscular broad bodies, but are also expected to be able to eat massive “manly” meals, and drink beer like it is water. The two ideas just do not mesh. I am so passionate about this controversy because I am a victim of the impact of images. Even in elementary school I always thought I was overweight, and went through several eating disorders. Still when I see a magazine of a perfect woman on the cover I compare myself, and think “I wish I could look like that.” The truth is that true beauty cannot be seen with human eyes. It is within the character and soul of a person, and that is a truth the media has trouble flashing on a cover of a magazine.