Women's Image in the Public Eye
Women have so much more to offer than only physical appeal. So, why are they always judged on their beauty?
It comes as no surprise that women are often bombarded with issues regarding their bodies and the way they are perceived. Not only it is that women are constantly made to feel ashamed of aspects of their bodies that are completely normal, but their value is often reduced to the measure of their beauty, especially for women in the public eye.
Throughout the years, the media has set up a body standard for women to constantly try and live up to; it capitalized on women's insecurities, which were caused by these unrealistic standards, in order to sell countless products, from slimming teas, to diet programs. Moreover, with the rise of social media in recent years, the issue has worsened due to heavily filtered images and videos of celebrities and influencers.
Moving on, the issue at hand is in the same vein as the issue of women's bodies perception. In the past couple of months, the legendary singer\songwriter Adele has stepped back into the limelight; she appears to have lost a significant amount of weight, which was a personal decision she has made for herself. The media ran wild with the reveal, calling it "The Ultimate Glowup" and comparing recent images of her with old ones, casting her former, bigger body in a negative light. As toxic and damaging as this can be too many who were exposed to these headlines, and even to the renowned singer herself, its effect goes far beyond body image.
More to the point, the real issue is that this woman is no longer celebrated for her music and artistic contribution; however, for a decision regarding her own body that was never meant for anyone else. Most of the recent headlines regarding Adele, have nothing to do with the release of her new album, or her upcoming tour, but only about her body transformation. Which begs the question, why is it that no matter what heights women reach, sooner or later, they're ultimately judged based on their appearance?
Reducing any multi-dimensional human being to one aspect of themselves is robbing them of everything that makes up who they are, and reducing women to only their physical appeal is overlooking all that they contribute to humanity.