Beauty has been a desirable trait throughout human history. People of all ages, from elders to teenagers, have yearned for beauty. When individuals could not attain the beauty they desired, they often became envious of those who conformed to societal beauty standards, resulting in violent or harmful actions towards them. These themes have been portrayed in various forms of media, including animations, cartoons, and movies. For instance, the story of Snow White depicts a beautiful woman whose stepmother was envious of her beauty and attempts to kill her. Many other examples could be provided.
Beauty standards have varied throughout history and across different countries. For example, in Korea, tall and slender women with hourglass figures, small faces with V-shaped chins, big eyes, thick heart-shaped lips, straight noses, round foreheads, and straight eyebrows, as well a
s having pale skin, are considered beautiful and stantard. In contrast, in the United States, having tan skin, big lips, a generally thick body, and being short is deemed beautiful. Therefore, beauty standards differ in various countries, and they can even vary from one region to another. People often feel depressed when they feel that they do not fit in with beauty standards and may turn to aesthetic surgery to alter their natural features.
However, undergoing aesthetic surgery does not necessarily resolve these issues. Once a perso
n starts changing his/her natural features according to beauty standards, it becomes challenging and even impossible to stop. For instance, a person may start this journey by just saying "I hate my nose bump, I will just change it, and that’s all" but after finally obtaining the desired nose, he/she may then focus on his/her thin lips and seek to alter them with Botox.
The cycle never ends. It is essential to remember that what one may dislike about hiself/herself could be considered desirable by others. For instance, having thin lips may be an undesirable trait for some, but it is a beauty standard in Japan. Similarly, a nose bump may be considered beautiful in Italy. It is not practical to move to countries where one's features align with beauty standards.
Instead
, self-love is essential. Self-love involves accepting one's features as they are and considering them as their beauty standard. This can be challenging at first, but over time, it leads to increased happiness and refreshment. People start doing things for themselves, and self-care becomes enjoyable. Exercises become fun as they are done for oneself and not to conf
orm to others' opinions about one's body. There may be days when one feels ugly, but it is essential not to let those thoughts hinder progress towards achieving one's purpose. Over time, this leads to greater confidence in one's body, and comparing oneself to others becomes less important.
In summary, it is ess
ential to love oneself, which can be more challenging than undergoing aesthetic surgery. While anyone with enough financial resources can obtain aesthetic surgery, not everyone can attain self-love. Furthermore, I firmly believe that being confident in one's body is more attractive than conforming to beauty standards. Therefore, there is no need to force oneself to follow in
the footsteps of unhappy ones who are obsessed with beauty standards. Instead, what holds great importance is to accept yourself the way you are and perform self-care activities for personal well-being. Additionally, one can apply makeup and do physical exercises as a way of self-love and self-care and not seek approval from others. The most important part should be focusing on doing what makes us happy.