Beauty and the Beast

An ad came out recently. It talks about "real beauty". I hate it. The cheesy music. The soft lighting. The way we are so judgemental of ourselves. The way our society venerates looks. The way the video is re-posted all over the place. Right now, our society says BEAUTY is:

Boobs (they must be big and round and on display. They are not appropriate when feeding babies)
Eyes (blue is preferable)
Ass (must be swished and jiggled and worn with shorts)
Unattainable (a "beautiful" person must be aloof, not part of the real world, on a pedastal, photoshopped)
Thin (because "plus" size models start at a size12)
Young (old = wrinkles, saggy, skin spots = ugly)

I'm sick of the beautiful/ugly dichotomy. I'm sick of "beauty" being only about snap-judgements and labels of "hot or not". I'm sick of discussions that ask if feminism is being feminist if it asks women to love how they look no matter what and not buy into consumerist culture notions of beauty. What if "beauty" meant something else entirely?

Brains (use them. Learn an instrument, learn a language, study astronomy, do math problems, read widely, learn about history and science... I'm into humanities. I love reading. I love writing. But I'm not so fussed what you do, just use your brain to LEARN! There is so much in this world! Infinitesimal things to learn and explore! GO TO IT!)

Ethics (is what you do harmful to others, or to the planet?) 

Attitude (anything is possible. People who are naysayers are awful to be around. I don't advocate positivity 100% of the time. It's not human. BUT! Oh, what we could change if people had a nicer attitude toward the world around them.)

Understanding (having empathy for the people around you. Walking in someone else's shoes. Investigating a situation in order to have more knowledge about it.)

Tenacity (having an inner strength) 

Y? (as in "why?" I realize I am cheating a little here. But it's my poem and I'll bend the rules if I want to. Question everything around you. Why is beauty about image? Why are women controlled through the media? Why are women subjucated and treated as mere physical objects? Why does the porn industry have such a stronghold over what "beauty" is, encouraging us to wax and preen and value ourselves purely on looks?)

To me, a "beautiful" person is someone with intelligence, integrity, and vivacity. That is the beauty I seek. That is the beauty I crave. And as for THAT ad. Their "beauty" is only skin deep. And no amount of face cream, soap, or shiny advertising, will scrub away the hypocrisy of a global conglomerate selling "beauty" products in the name of empowerment. 

The end.