In the nineties it was Unpretty by TLC
In the noughties it was Beautiful by Christina Aquilera
More recently we had Little Me by Little Mix
And now Beyonce with Pretty Hurts
The video portrays Beyonce taking part in a beauty pageant
Her sash reads Miss 3rd Ward
We see her go to any lengths to win
She puts vaselline on her teeth
Gets botox injected in to her face
We also see her purging
Other girls eat cotton balls to fill their stomachs
Some are painfully thin
The girls all line up in the pageant
They look like Stepford wives
Smiles painted on their faces
Mechanically waving
Perfectly in synch
The song like all the others before it comments on the pressures facing women in this day and age
Pretty hurts
We shine the light on whatever's worse
Perfection is the disease of a nation
Pretty hurts, pretty hurts
We shine the light on whatever's worse
Tryna fix something
But you can't fix what you can't see
It's my soul that needs the surgery
We shine the light on whatever's worse
Perfection is the disease of a nation
Pretty hurts, pretty hurts
We shine the light on whatever's worse
Tryna fix something
But you can't fix what you can't see
It's my soul that needs the surgery
The video directed by Melina Matsoukas shows Beyonce trying everything in her power to look flawless -but still can't achieve perection
Matsoukas said -
'Well I think we wanted to speak to as many women as we could and all the pain and struggle that we go through as women to maintain the impossible standard of beauty. We wanted to give it a darker edge and not give you the Disney version of that struggle'
I think it's great that Beyonce is addressing this subject
There has never been more pressure on women to be perfect
Everything we do is scrutinised
Our weight
Our shape
Our beauty
Eating disorders are on the rise and are effecting younger and younger boys and girls
It's impossible to escape the message that thin and beautiful equals success
It's so important to reassure our children that they are perfect just the way they are
I remember when I was in school weight was a hot topic
I studied ballet where my body was on constant show
You really need to be a strong person with good self esteem to avoid falling in to the beauty trap
Hopefully this song and video will get people talking about body image and eating disorders
Because all too often we feel we need to change the external to fix something that's internal
We go on diets
We measure our self worth in pounds and ounces
We deny ourselves food
We feel we have to be a certain size
We compare ourselves to air brushed photos in magazines
We try our best to be perfect when really there is no such thing
Because all too often we feel we need to change the external to fix something that's internal
We go on diets
We measure our self worth in pounds and ounces
We deny ourselves food
We feel we have to be a certain size
We compare ourselves to air brushed photos in magazines
We try our best to be perfect when really there is no such thing
Have you seen this video?
What did you think?
I haven't seen the video but I do think that this issue needs to be talked about and brought out into the light... ED is a terrible disease... I think the stars themselves need to stop perpetrating it... that is sad...
ReplyDeleteI hope you are having a good day Ruby..
I watched the video and I guess I wasn't crazy about it but I didn't hate it either. She had some good points. I didn't think it felt "dark." I do hate how you have to be a certain way to be considered a lady or beautiful. I have tattoos and piercings but I dress nice (when I'm not in gym clothes) and I try to set a standard for looking professional yet still being able to have my body modification. I don't think it changes a person. I also don't think that looking a certain way makes you any less attractive to someone. Ultimately I think a good heart is most attractive. When you have an inner light, it shines through to everyone else.
ReplyDeleteI decided I wanted to specialize in eating disorders. It's known as one of the most difficult to treat in the mental health world but being that I conquered it, I think I'm up for the challenge. :)
You decide what's pretty. You're the one that lives with yourself and the one who should dictate what's the best version of you.
<3
I haven't watched the video but it's really huge now so I might, after my finals.
ReplyDeleteI have however listened to the other songs. Beautiful and Little Me does nothing for me but Unpretty is one of those songs I listen to on repeat after binging (weird, right?) I had listened to the Glee version of it first, and then decided to listen to the original.
Personally I think that Beyonce sounds hypocritical.