Beauty Standards From Around The Select Countries I Chose

With our recent focus on beauty standards in the classroom, I have taken some interest in finding how the standards we are used to here in America compare to those around the world. Unsurprisingly, there was a plethora of studies and even videos doing just that, some of which had some data that seemed to go completely against the typical western standard of beauty.  One video done in 2014 (linked at the end of post) showed a woman who sent a picture of herself to photoshop editor around the world and asked them to simply "Make me beautiful."  The different transformations sent back were incredible, but one thing that really stuck out to me was towards the end of the video when they showed how the US editor portrayed the woman.  The editor had basically reshaped her entire head so that it was about 1/3 the size it used to be and shrinking her hairstyle, aligning with our recent readings that emphasized the how women were expected to "take up less space".  Interestingly enough, editors from countries such as the Philippines exaggerated her facial features by adding makeup  and volumizing her hair by straightening it and it having it drop past her shoulders.  However, this type of hairstyle is very uncommon as a large portion of Philippine woman have curled hair, which seems to suggest that countries find beauty in what is in contrast to their natural beauty.  

When it came to makeup, a UK study found that women spend 474 days of their life applying it to themselves, and another survey done in the US found that 91% of women would rather cancel a first date than attend it without makeup on.  This just goes to show how much pressure it put onto women to hide their true face, whereas men do not typically have to worry about the same kind of judgment. At least, that's what's typical.  It seems that in East Asian countries, especially South Korea, even men are expected to be above a certain standard of beauty. In S. Korea, a headshot and even your weight is expected on formal applications such as resumes, which comes to no surprise coming from a country that has the highest per capita rate for plastic surgery.  There exist what is known as the "flower boy" concept in which is similar to the "pretty boy" look we see in the US.  And yet the western influence does not stop there, for the most highly sought for plastic surgery treatment for men in S.Korea is nose surgery.  They are given higher nose bones so that they look more like westerners, and similarly women often attempt to switch their monolids to that of the typical western double eyelid.  

Despite the heavy focus on physical beauty, surveys done in multiple countries seem to suggest at that at least 60% of people look for an inner beauty when looking for a partner.  This goes to show that looks aren't everything, and everyone can come off as more attractive simply be being a kind and humble human being.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RT9FmDBrewA  <-----link to beauty standards video

Being Trans: Is it a “White” Thing?

Perhaps you have heard of the name “Thomas Beatle”.  Ring any bells?  That is what the world-famous pregnant man renamed himself as.  He was born a girl, underwent sex reassignment surgery, but kept his internal reproductive organs intact.  He became famous after he stopped taking hormone drugs and became pregnant through artificial assimilation as a man. 

What is interesting is that when he transitioned into a man, he chose a “white” name, rather than an Asian name, as his heritage and facial characteristics would suggest.

            In “Why You Don’t Have to Choose A White Boy Name To Be A Man In This World,” Kenji Tokawa, talks about the way names are gendered.  Different cultures have different ways of interpreting names.  One name may be feminine in one culture, while also be masculine in another culture.  In this culture, it is “white” names that carry the advantage when renaming oneself.  According to Tokawa, “culture of white supremacy presents the white male body as what is normal for masculinity.  Along with the body comes the acceptable set of names.  Along with a presumed whiteness comes respect.  Along with this respect comes confidence and safety to move about in this world as masculine self-identified” (210).  Tokawa mentions this in retrospect after the awkward encounter with Kristen, where she mistakes his name and calls him “Benji” like the popular Americanized dog in the late 1900s movies.  While it is natural to associate things with ideas that we have learned from our culture, it is important to realize that a feminized name does not mean a male gender, and vice versa. 

            Culture does play a huge role in how names are interpreted.  For example, Tokawa says “ko” is perhaps a lucky traits in a name for tomboy” (209)  in a Latinized linguistic environment.  On the other hand, in Japan, his previous name was a “very flowery, feminine Japanese name” (209), which means “Joy and beauty” (209).  Indeed, when he went to college, more Japanese girls had his name, and he needed to change his feminine name to a more masculine one.  He purposefully choses Kenji, which is a Japanese name in a video game, hoping that people will recognize it as Japanese and male.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.  In essence, the lesson to be learned here is to take a second look before you assume a person’s gender.