Premium Essay

The Ugly Truth About Beauty

In:

Submitted By Gabe0930
Words 814
Pages 4
Rehtorical Analsysis of “The Ugly Truth About Beauty” There is a cliché quote that people say, “Beauty is in the eye of beholder.” But in the essay “The Ugly Truth About Beauty” (1998) Dave Barry argues about how women who spend countless hours on their so called “beauty” whereas men seem not to care. Barry uses juxtaposition and exaggeration to poke fun at men and women behavior and shed light on the harm that the beauty industry is doing. When Barry argues his point of his essay he addresses both genders, but more specifically teenage to middle age men and women, but he writes about it in a humorous and light-hearted manner. In the essay, Barry juxtaposes men and women views of beauty by using the famous supermodel, Cindy Crawford, as the standard of apperance that women strive to achieve, even though that the women could never exactly look like Cindy Crawford, no matter how much or the way you apply the make-up. As for the men Barry uses the famous actor Bradd Pitt, as the strandard that men, not necessairly try to achieve, but as how a man is not suppose to be or act. He claims that men look at Brad Pitt as a pretty boy and that he would be ignorant to the tasks of a real man. Barry uses a different examples to juxtapose men and women view about beauty using Barbie and Action figures. He uses action figures for, of course, the men and that men not strive to look like the action, but how men uses action figures as a model of how a man is supposse to act and carry himself. In contrast Barry uses Barbie as women standard of apperance. Women want to look like Barbie, but women would have to be “seven feet tall and eighty-one pounds of which fifty-three of those pounds would be bosoms.’ Even though that was a bit of exaggerated, that is really what women are trying to achieve. Barry also juxtatposed the time that men and women spend on apperance. Men would

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Child Beauty Pageants

...Child Beauty Pageants Beauty pageants are one of the most controversial and debatable subjects where many critics have tried to explain and understand what the concept of the word beauty means. The definition of the word beauty to the critics was the pleasing or attractive features of something or by other words it is something that generates pleasant sensations. All of these years the whole world has been captivated and charmed by the beauty pageants shows on the television, but the real and ugly truth is that it is a mixture of a disgusting and not admired show that have kept on grabbing the attention of many viewers just for money and fame. “As child reality TV star Honey Boo Boo continues to capture the attention of audiences with her boisterous personality and her own show about life on the child beauty pageant circuit”. (Cartwright, University of Arizona; Princess by proxy: When child beauty pageants aren't about the kids, 2012). Beauty pageants are appearing more in magazines and on television all the time such as the models that appear on a fashion show where they look skinny and frail. The beauty pageants contests is harmful for the young children’s prosperity because it makes the children reach to a conclusion that the physical beauty is the most important condition and primary judge of their character to win the contest, and they put into their minds that they are not beautiful from the inside and also think that they look ugly without putting a huge amount of cosmetics...

Words: 1607 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Beauty with the Romantics

...Love & Beauty John Keats: Keats is called the poet of beauty or some critics address him as ‘the worshiper of beauty’. Keats’s notion of beauty and truth is highly inclusive. That is, it blends all life’s experiences or apprehensions, negative or positive, into a holistic vision. Art and nature, therefore, are seen as therapeutic in function. Keats was considerably influenced by Spenser and was, like the latter, a passionate lover of beauty in all its forms and manifestation. This passion for beauty constitutes his aestheticism. Beauty, indeed, was his pole-star, beauty in Nature, in woman, and in art. He writes and defines beauty: “A think of beauty is joy for ever” In John Keats, we have a remarkable contrast both with Byron and Shelley. He knows nothing of Byron’s stormy spirit of antagonism to the existing order of things and he had no sympathy with Shelley’s humanitarian real and passion for reforming the world. But Keats likes and worships beauty. In his Ode on a Grecian Urn, he expresses some powerful lines about his thoughts of beauty. This ode contains the most discussed two lines in all of Keats's poetry: “Beauty is truth, truth beauty," - that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.” The exact meaning of those lines is disputed by everyone; no less a critic than TS Eliot considered them a blight upon an otherwise beautiful poem. Scholars have been unable to agree to whom the last thirteen lines of the poem are addressed. Arguments can be made...

Words: 2503 - Pages: 11

Free Essay

Inflation

...lose face, lose friends, or fail when a goal is within reach, your harmless personality quirks may have morphed into serious self-sabotage. "A bad habit becomes destructive when your behavior causes more than momentary regret and leaves you feeling disappointed in yourself," says Pauline Wallin, PhD, author of Taming Your Inner Brat. Why do we derail our own happiness? Experts attribute it to a variety of unconscious beliefs: nagging doubt about whether we really deserve what we're striving for; apprehension that we won't be able to handle increased expectations and responsibilities; even fear that our achievement may isolate us from our peers or family members. To overcome self-sabotage, you must first identify its origin and then take steps to interrupt the cycle. Here are five ways you might be tripping yourself up, and suggestions for how to (finally) get out of your own way. Related: QUIZ: Does Your Body Image Need a Boost? Fatal Flaw #1: You procrastinate. Tomorrow is soon enough. Besides, you excel under pressure. The ugly...

Words: 1884 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Letters During The Vietnam War

...Letters from soldiers who are fighting in a war are cliche in many aspects, yet each letter is unique in its own way. Many soldiers, including those who fought in Vietnam, sent letters back home to describe their ups and downs in the war. Unfortunately, those who fought in Vietnam were not only dealing with the struggle of fighting, but they also faced the struggle to survive in a place where the enemy was everywhere. They faced mental hardships throughout the war. They were fighting a war in an ugly, yet beautiful, battlefield. All the letters that are sent home during the Vietnam Conflict were written by those who served in the military of the United States. They either fought in the frontlines, provided information to those who fought in the frontlines, assisted those who fought in the frontlines, or assisted those who coordinated the battle in the frontlines. Their first hand accounts of the war was credible in many ways. Their letters were not written from secondary sources but were written from primary sources. Their letters could only be written by those who saw the war with...

Words: 562 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Knowles Pretty Hurts Analysis

...The song “Pretty Hurts” by Beyoncè Knowles sends a powerful message about the damaging effects of rigid beauty standards and body policing, showing us the pressure we put on women to look in a certain way in todays society. In the video “Pretty Hurts” it gives the viewers a better understanding of the interpretations trying to be made. Beyoncè takes us behind scenes of a pageant show, giving viewers a vivid image of the horrific truth. She not only shows us the standards that the world expects for women, but also the lengths that women would go through to be number one. I believe Beyoncè often tries to sell herself as effortlessly beautiful, and that her songs, photos and videos do contribute to this virtually unobtainable standard of beauty,...

Words: 1080 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Everything

...“The Ugly Truth about Beauty” Position Paper The main ideas of this this paper consist of how to tell women how they look, and that no matter what women never think they look good enough. Even though the author starts off by making you think that this paper is going to explain how to correctly answer to women when they ask how they look, it jumps off to talking about how women are never happy about their looks. It also mentions on how women always want to emulate the famous models or actresses such as Cindy Crawford and such whereas guys will never try to emulate the looks of famous men. I have had experiences like the ones the author mentions in this paper. I have been asked the magic question, “how do I look?” and of course I say that they look good because there are no ugly women out there. Regardless, of how I answer I get a look that says, “You’re lying out of your ears, you must want something!” but that is never the case. I have also seen family member buying make-up and/or products because a beautiful famous woman is advertising it, not understanding that just because they advertise it doesn’t mean that they use. At last, who will ever make women think different? I think that the author does use ethos, logos and pathos. The character and image of the paper are women and make-up. He uses a few different logical arguments when he mentions that women try emulating Barbie or Cindy Crawford, and that men will never envy the looks of other men. He also uses the difference...

Words: 308 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Body Image Analysis Paper

...This article Just tend to analyze fitting in today’s society, beauty is measured by the slimness of the body, the length and thinness of the legs, the size of the eyes or even the thickness of the lips. Women all over the world are driven by media and advertisements to try to meet society’s meaning of beauty. Unfortunately, to most, cosmetic surgery seems to be the easiest way to achieve the perfect image to fit society’s appeal. During the 20th century, so many injuries were coming about during the war that the advancement and experimentation of plastic surgery began. This study analyze that, Humans seem to be obsessed with beauty, at least in our western culture. Thousands of advertisements are created and put into publication everyday and then distributed to communities all over the world. As we flip through our magazines and newspapers, turn on the TV, or glance at the billboards high above us, we can't help being influenced by what we see. Advertisements can be successful at selling their product to their audience by manipulating the consumers' fears. Advertising surrounds us and creates a world that we only wish existed. They focus on sending out a message that informs women what they need to do in order to...

Words: 1232 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

The Bride Revolution

...Gresa Statovci Beauty is truth, truth beauty AUK Book Literature Club 1/14/2013 Bride of Revolution “She is beautiful, and her dress is marvelous!” Beautiful, extravagant, and congratulations are the words that I have been told all day long. I see all these people staring at me and at my white dress with the most joyous faces; I hear them saying that I am a beautiful bride. From the bottom of my heart I want to yell with all my forces “You have not seen me this morning when I woke up!” or “Thank the makeup lady and the stylist.” Instead, I keep smiling and realizing how the human mind is so narrowed that it perceives the most unimportant stuff. How come nobody complimented my eyes, my cheeks or the shape of my lips? Are people aware that what they see as beautiful is temporary and will be vanished someday? How many people in this planet know the definition of truth beauty? I know this is supposed to be my day and the only thing occupying my mind should be realizing how lucky I am to marry this handsome guy. Well, temporarily handsome guy because what if that girl in the black dress who is staring at us decides to take the knife and leave a scar in his beautiful face? Will that make him ugly? In the eyes of the others probably yes, but not to me because I truly love him. To me love is art because by enjoying the simplest details it brings truthful elation, and my husband is a piece of art. He is a beautiful creature; all his features will be my everlasting stunning...

Words: 1009 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

The Importance Of Plastic Surgery

...appearances. There are countless reasons why people would want to look good. It isn’t always about pleasing others and they could be doing this solely for themselves. Most people are afraid to admit that their physical appearance is crucial to them and plays an important role when it comes to interacting with...

Words: 806 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

How To Read Literature Like A Professor Thomas Foster Summary

..."Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures,” as quoted by Ralph Waldo Emerson. In Thomas C. Foster's How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster gives insight to the reader about how there is always more to a story than meets the eye. Foster covers an abundance of topics for instance, how some pieces of literature have in depth political apprehension. Foster distinguishes between overtly political writing which includes literature whose main intent is to influence the prevailing political ideology and “political” writing that is more subtle and possibly more effective. Political writing offers a perspective into the realities of the world and in doing so touches upon themes and problems that are collectively shared and thus relatable. In Park Tae Jun’s Lookism, a webcomic, regarding a teenage boy by the name of Hyung Suk who has repeatedly been the victim of bullying because of his appearance at his old school finally comes to his breaking point. Hyung Suk later convinces his mother to buy him a bus ticket to a new school somewhere in Korea for...

Words: 598 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Kierkgaard’s “3 Stages of Life (Aesthetic, Ethical and Religious

...Chantae Irvin April 17th, 2016 Kierkgaard’s “3 Stages of Life (Aesthetic, Ethical and Religious) Soren Kierkegaard (1813–1855) emphasizes the stages of life’s way which includes aesthetic, ethical and religious. It is essentially stated that all persons pass through the three stages to come into themselves. However, the idea of aesthetics, ethical and religious matters does not always coincide with one another. These things all potentially hold different characteristics and are developed differently in each individual. Nonetheless, they will essentially conflict with one another as Kierkegaard describes their stages in a fictitious manner. Kierkegaard makes it rather intense to give his own particular standpoint on the stages of life, and he does not decree answers. On the other hand, he encourages individuals to make their own conclusions. My theory is that the stages on life’s way including aesthetics, ethical and religious stages are the infinite developments on life’s way for all individuals. However, these stages are not emphasized to have had chronological order. They are uniquely criticized differently as they all are developments of life’s way. These three stages were composed for everyone to analyze and evaluate their own situations distinctively. The answer to the three stages of life does imply the individual interpretation on particular stages rather than someone else’s interpretation. In theory, the uniqueness of aesthetics, ethical, and religious stages are...

Words: 1752 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Pageants: a Source for Strong, Productive Young Women

... Why it is that child activists and psychologists are so concerned for the children who enter pageants? And lastly, are pageants really that bad? There are many articles, blogs and papers that have written on this topic. This paper seeks to answer a few of the many questions surrounding pageantry. The paper brings light to the many “types” of pageant and further seeks to explain the benefits of pageantry; giving the reader a clear idea of what actually goes on in the world of pageantry. Pageants: A Source for Strong, Productive Young Women My experience with pageants is that of both a contestant and a “pageant mom.” I began competing in pageants at the age of 14. I do not come from a pageant family; my mother knew absolutely nothing about pageants and only allowed me to enter because I wouldn’t stop asking. I won the very first pageant I entered and I was hooked after that. Many pageants later, I had gained several crowns, trophies and prizes, but most importantly I had gained a heightened level of self-esteem and confidence. As a parent, I have allowed my daughters to compete in several pageants, being very selective of the type of pageant. Like myself, their experiences have been very positive. Because of my experiences, I have become an advocate for pageants; the right pageants. Pageants have been around for hundreds of years; however, most recently, the popularity of reality television has shed a negative light...

Words: 1943 - Pages: 8

Free Essay

Plato

...call love, but usually end up disappointed when the romance goes away. Yet we keep getting married, thinking that we are going to be the ones that will beat the system. If we fail, we change our partner and try again. We end up our love life as we began it, confused, afraid and as disappointed as we were hopeful. The malaise that characterises our love lives naturally finds its way to the philosophical consulting room. In this paper I shall attempt to show how Plato’s view of love can be helpful both in dispelling our confusion about love and in proposing some solutions to our suffering. A comprehensive account of Plato’s complex theory of love, an exhaustive presentation of the controversies involved in interpreting it or a thorough discussion of the problems it creates, are all beyond the scope of this paper. What one may hope to do is to introduce the reader to some basic characteristics of Plato’s view of love, and then to share some thoughts about its applicability to our contemporary view of the blessings and predicaments involved in what we call love. I shall therefore begin with Plato’s definitions of love (sections 1 and 2), followed by a description...

Words: 7450 - Pages: 30

Free Essay

Killing Us Softly

...“Killing Us Softly” Personal Response Essay “Killing us Softly” is a documentary by Jean Kilbourne on the message that the advertisement industry sends out to women and the near impossible standards of feminine beauty it upholds. Cindy Crawford once said “I wish I looked like Cindy Crawford”. Now this might sound bizarre to many, but the truth is, in today’s world of Botox and Photoshop, cosmetic surgery and strict diets it is impossible to be that ‘perfect body’ that ads portray. According to a photographer for a leading fashion magazine, a particular shot goes through at least 20-30 rounds of airbrushing. Tag lines such as “beauty knows no pain” and “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” develop and encourage such unhealthy attitudes. According to a study, an average American views 3000 ads per day. Ads have a quick, cumulative and subconscious effect. They create a toxic cultural environment where the well being and health of an individual are threatened. They show these models who have so-called perfect bodies, no blemishes, no marks, no wrinkles, and no nothing. But the problem is that beauty starts being equated with a painfully thin marks-free fair body. This affects the self- esteem of women and they become ashamed of their physical attributes and try harder to achieve those exacting and impractical standards. A popular weight loss tag line says “the more you subtract the more you add”. So women start going for sizes 0 and 00. These not only affect health...

Words: 445 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Shakespeare Analysis

...Ugly and Lovely A man who has ever fallen in love with a woman probably has felt a loss for words. Men have been enthralled by a woman’s beauty are at times speechless when it comes to expressing their true feelings he has for a special girl. Also the idea to have make love with beautiful women, to create more beautiful people in this world is one is expressed in Shakespeare ‘s sonnet. This famous man had a way to do it and did it in such a way; it should be considered an art form. Shakespeare’s ability to pour out emotions and his use of word play has transcended through the years. Many of his works can still be seen in modern day media. The sonnets that I have found fascinating are Sonnets 18 and Sonnet 130. What made me want to analyze these sonnets is because many people associate Shakespeare with romance. After reading these pieces of literature one can see this in these two sonnets exemplify such qualities. A major theme in sonnet 18 that can be felt is a love, lust, and endearment. These sonnets may have similar themes where a woman is central point, he is able to contrast and contradict his own work. In Sonnet 18 Shakespeare compares a woman to a summer’s day, which is full of life and enjoyment. Although this is true, it can be said that Shakespeare is writing the poem about himself. In sonnet 130 Shakespeare changes the dynamic of how sonnets are written. Usually sonnets put women on a pedestal, but in 130 he approach is different. I believe he does this as a joke...

Words: 638 - Pages: 3