Body
image is always changing as a social construction and society keep piling on
unrealistic ideals of beauty and attraction for both women and men.
Communication researchers would explain the societal expectations of beauty
with a concept called social comparison. Social comparison as it relates to
social expectation is easily explained when advertisers alter an image of a
person so much that the person becomes almost unrecognizable from the photo.
TV and
movie stars are chosen for many roles based on looks, so many of the people we
see regularly in TV and films are highly attractive. We then compare ourselves
to these people and the unrealistic body standards. With constant reinforcement
of this comparison, society has created a culture in which many people feel bad
about their natural appearance.
This not
only affects self-esteem and morale, but it affects your sex life as well. A
study from the U.S. National Library of Medicine by Yasisca Pujols, Cindy M.
Meston, and Brooke N. Seal found a link between body image and sexual
satisfaction in women.
“Among
nonclinical populations, several body image variables, particularly poor body
image during sexual activity and body part dissatisfaction, have been linked to
lower sexual efficacy, lower sexual assertiveness, and poorer sexual esteem
among college-aged women,” according to the study.
Not
surprisingly, a similar study by Robin Milhausen, Andrea Buchholz, Emily
Opperman, and Lindsay Benson found the same link of body image and sexual
satisfaction in men. Men with a better body image were seen to have more sexual
satisfaction.
Being
confident in yourself and your body is scientifically shown to enhance your sex
life and encourages sexual satisfaction, but we don’t live in a culture where
this self-confidence is easily attainable. It’s hard to love your body when you
are shamed into hating it.
Both
women and men fall for society’s obsession with looks. Plastic surgery has been
around for a long time, making alterations and minor adjustments that wouldn’t
be necessary if our capitalistic culture didn’t demand a certain appearance and
shun those who don’t conform.
Plastic
surgery has been taken to another level with labiaplasty and penile enhancement
surgeries. While these procedures have medical purposes in cases where part of
the genitals are causing discomfort or pain, when they are used for purely
cosmetic reasons, they add to the body image insecurities many people face.
No person
or society should determine how someone should look, whether it’s hair, odor,
weight, scars, or general appearance. The only person who gets to decide what
to do with their body and how they feel about it is the one who inhabits
it.
Men and
women alike shouldn’t have to feel pressured to change their body for the
pleasure of someone else or feel invalid because of their natural appearance.
Showing a little excess weight, body hair, odor, or scars is seen as an
abnormality and unattractive, when in reality, the purest and most natural form
of a person is the most beautiful.
As human
beings, we have a right to pleasure, confidence, and freedom when it comes to
our bodies. Until we recognize and respect these rights of everyone and learn
to recognize our individual beauty, nothing will change about society’s ideal
body image.
Taylor
McAvoy
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