Negative self image is an epidemic in our society. Men, women, young girls, and young boys all suffer from media that is telling them constantly, "You are not good enough." All types of media send us this message, it might be verbally, but most likely it is found in ads and pictures. While some people refuse to believe they are being influenced by the media, I have yet to find a way around it. Everything we see or hear tells us to be skinner and taller, to wear makeup and be tan, to have big muscles and to be brave, do not age naturally, wrinkles and gray hair are not okay.
Mirror is a song that debuted in 2004 by a Christian girl band, Barlow Girl, it seems to take the words right out of my mouth. This song is so beautifully written and describes very well the battle we are fighting with our minds and the media.
Beauty takes all different forms. Teenage girls do not have to wear makeup to be beautiful. Teenage boys do not have to work out to be attractive, they don't even have to be manly. These lies have been fed to us for so long that the magazines that appeal to this age group do not even see a problem with the content they publish in their issues. Most adults think it is only this age group that is affected by pressure from the media, but do not, for a second, believe that lie. We see it everywhere, and everyone is affected by it. The problem is, we see it so often that it becomes hard to point out where this negative media is and stop it from influencing us.
Is there a cure for this epidemic of negative self image? It takes a conscious effort everyday to tell yourself, "I will not buy into this lie that the world around me is feeding me! I am beautiful the way I am!" This type of beauty is not focused on the outside appearance, but of the soul. The part of a person that does not wrinkle with age or conform to the ways the world wants it to. The soul is who we are genuinely, it has not changed and never will. Look inside yourself and that is where you will find the real, beautiful YOU.
Will there ever be a world without gendered media? Sadly, no I do not think this will ever go away. Like they say, sex sales. Sexy will always be portrayed the same way, tall, skinny, big breasts, small waist, and perfect skin. We, a society as a whole, can combat with the gatekeepers who publish these false ideas of beauty, but it will be a long, rough fight. Gendered media targets young people, if parents will tell their children what beauty really is and not to be entertained by media and its lies, maybe there could be a world without this epidemic. A world without gendered media? No. A world without a negative self image? Possibly.
