I have always thought it amazing how Barbara Bush, even with the fame and fortune, continued to age naturally. There was no hair dye, face lifts and she never really conformed with the crazy fashion trends. Being a women in power I thought she must be affected by the beauty myth, but how? After reading the article “Jane Fonda, Barbara Bush and Other Aging Bodies,” I have come to understand. Barbara points out openly to the media that she does not follow the feminine norm, she is the first to point out how ‘grandmotherly’ she looks. She states how being concerned with her looks is not important when it comes to her daily life. Although I found it very interesting that even though she chooses to look this way, she undoubtedly is aware of societies desire to remain youthful. I almost think it is a stand she chose. To pick one side (the unachievable woman) or the other (natural). She finds this a the center for her arguments in feminist theory. She doesn’t care how she looks, but she really does.
This leads me into my next point. Why do women care so much about their appearance? The fake bo-tox, implants, makeup, it does not look real. People have come to see this fake women and think she is attractive. I have watched a few episodes of a television show called “The Real House Wives of Atlanta,” and these women take the beauty myth to the extreme. Doing things such as lazoring the cellulite away, lypo, and the worst in my opinion, lip injections. It is a symbol of power yes, but simply because you have to be rich to afford all of these operations. I had to sit back and think to myself, how is all of that body distortion important to these women? If I had the money for bo-tox, I would instead buy a car, invest in a company, or save for my future. Many women today are becoming too obsessed with their bodies and missing opportunities to improve life in general. They could be going out and talking to impoverished youth, and teaching them how to be as successful as them. Giving their money to charity, or even helping with the feminists movement. Women are putting their strength into the wrong ambitions and it is frightening for our future.
