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I've seen ads for Dove's new firming cream on Metro and walking by certain bus kiosks on K street. They feature the slogan "as tested on real curves" -- often featuring a single full-figured woman in a bikini -- or a line of fuller-figured women of various skin tones...
Some people may think those ads are disgusting -- and if you are one of those... come... over... here...
*throws the proverbial book at you and does a Yoda impersonation* "Judge me by my size, do you, hmmmmm?"
It's taken years to finally be comfortable in the skin I'm in, no thanks to all the pressure/media stating that one should be a size zero. It's one thing to be overeating, not working out, being inactive and the like -- that *is* a problem. And that's a different issue.
But in my case, I'm able to outswim and outdance a lot of people. I love to hike. Yes. I'm a bigger gal, but except for one episode (which was not related to my size), I'm also relatively healthy. I intend to stay that way. Never mind for other virtues that have nothing to do with my outward appearance.
And yet, to many a person's ideal, I'm still too fat. To those people I say: Sorry. You're being annoying. Living life on my own terms. "Size Zero" does not always mean healthy. It also does not mean I'm less of a person and less deserving of courtesy and respect if I'm not the size you think I should be. Live it. Learn it. Love it. And if you can't? Leave it. Your problem. Not mine.
It's not my issue alone according to one study (I'm also sure there are many others stating the very same thing.):
Dove Global Study: The Truth about Beauty--
What's the truth about beauty? Dove recently set out across 10 countries and interviewed 3,000 women to find out.
Only 2% of these women describe themselves as “beautiful”
About 3/4 of them rate their beauty as "average"
Almost 1/2 of them think their weight is "too high"
And the truth doesn't stop there. Read the Dove Global Study
for a closer look at all the responses - and discover how perceptions of real
beauty truly vary around the world.
It's because of all this, I can't help but cheer at those ads... This ad campaign celebrates the true beauty of all women. Not just the ones that are Lindsay Lohan's size, but also those women that are -- like me -- more akin to Mae West and Marilyn Monroe...
We're beautiful in our own right. Every. Single. One. Of. Us.
While I don' t use Dove myself, I applaud their efforts to counter those narrower ideals and stereotypes through the Campaign for Real Beauty . I really wish more companies would follow suit. One day at a time...
Thanks for listening to me vent, y'all...
2 comments:
Personally, I love the Dove ads, a very pleasant addition to usually mundane world of subway ads, and those ladies are very sexy.
As one of the men that appreciates and prefers a more voluptous woman I applaud anything that helps them feel sexier and more feminine.
Sadly, society has put a damper on these woman, it's taken me 4 years to convince my fiance that she's a hottie, but after 24 years of being dumped on by the media and insulted by various Neanderthal males it's not easy to change one's mind.
Real men can have curves too!
*shakes it*
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