Fashion Warp

The way your body looks and the ways that you dress are often very important for young developing adolescents, especially girls. Surrounded by media, pop culture, and their peers puts young people under unique circumstances when it comes to body, mind, and attire. It is no wonder why society and young girls in specific, develop a fixation on fashion, their bodies, and weight. The USA Today news article entitled: “Do Thin Models Warp Girls’ Body Image?” questions the effect of “unnaturally thin” models that seem to increase in numbers on the runway every year. The stories in “Red” go further into some personal exploration of girls and their experiences with youth, weight, and their bodies. Finally, I can relate to topics such as fashion and attractiveness; these were important qualities growing up in the social niches that surrounded my adolescent life.

USA Today produces a quality article that provides detail about society’s turn towards aggressive fashion within pop culture and “unnaturally thin” models. The models are everywhere it seems—parading around in magazines, television, and the movies. USA Today sees young girls getting a warped view on the way real women’s bodies look: “These girls are anomalies of nature. They are freaks of nature. They are not average. They are naturally thin and have incredibly long legs compared to the rest of their body. Their eyes are wide set apart. Their cheekbones are high.” USA Today claims that girls need to realize that the models they see in the media are not realistic to the way real women look. Too many young people are taking models for their face-value—examples of what they should look like. The truth is that these people are rare and not the way girls should strive to look.

I remember growing up and many of the girls that I knew strived to look older and more attractive by applying makeup and wearing skimpy clothing. In sixth grade, girls would apply makeup in the back of the room and gaze at their faces in pocket mirrors. Now, along with this, girls are also obsessed with social networking and cell phones. Young girls can text, Facebook, and twitter, all while applying makeup at the same time. It is amazing how much skill it takes to simultaneously do these things, it also must rob them of a lot of peace of mind. Now girls and young people feel anxious and nervous when they have nothing to do or they are not in the middle of something. Instead of relaxing, girls feel stressed out when they have time on their hands; society has programmed them to think that if they are not doing something constantly, they must be worthless.

These facts are startling, new and specific criteria are being forced on young girls through media and social outlets. Without proper education and realization, girls will end up feeling lost, worthless, and alone. If it is impossible to become one of these “fashion anomalies” then there must be something wrong; increased stress, depression, and confusion are all symptoms that the “warped girls” of USA Today’s exhibit.