Monday, November 08, 2010

Radiate confidence...

..but, only after you get under the knife.

The words on the title of the post are on an ad that has been catching my eye a few times now. I see it when I stand still on the right hand side (left hand side is for me on energetic days) on the Tube escalators going up . The ad is a decent visual, colorful, much like many of the ads you see as you glide upward into the real world. The advertisers have but a few seconds to win you over. This one features an attractive girl, perfect body I'd assume depending on your benchmark of perfection. Well, the usual model types.

I find it quite ridiculous though, because the ad is for cosmetic surgery. So what is putting off is that 'radiate confidence' is encouraged not by having confidence in what you know, or even who you are, but completely on how you look. It's a trite statement, I know. And over discussed too.
And it is a business for these surgery companies, but still, it's ridiculous.

I'd imagine the ad to be more about a cream that enhances your glowing complexion, or a public speaking course, but no! And yet, there will be tons of people who will head home, go straight to their 'Goals for the Summer notice board' and add one more thing - "Radiate confidence - Contact Dr. Quack."

I understand it is about perspective and is very subjective.

Bad day for one: Not fitting into size 18 jeans
Bad day for Paris Hilton: 3mm of armpit fat sticking out from the Badgely Mischka dress

For this ad, I'm concerned about the one's that don't particularly need the surgery, coz they look lovely just the way they are!

It's also not that I'm completely against plastic surgery, not at all. In fifteen years if something is bothering me, and I want to take care of it, I may do it. I don't know. Maybe I'm a future hypocrite.

I do believe tho that if you do change things about yourself, you do it for the right reason. Not just to radiate confidence this summer! There are some of us who probably really need it to correct a defect, or even if there is something that bothers us far too much.

On the one hand we can learn to live with it, because its ours. Even find it endearing maybe? It becomes part of how another may describe me. Part of my identity, but only if I were made to feel special because of my uniqueness. But when descriptions say turn to poking fun which may cause me to rethink my existence on earth?? Wellll, then maybe its time to just do what makes me happy. The point is - within reason. Reasoning done with a rational mind. Don't just encourage a compulsive need to nip and tuck and cut and flush out and scrape - in the name of self assessed beauty. Coz this summer it is radiate confidence, next summer it will be something else.

Besides, aren't you afraid of all those needle pokes and the mental images of the blood and the sound of the scraping on that nose of yours as they work to beautify it?

Oh wait, I guess that's just my mind.

Today I'm humming: Nah Neh Nah by Vaya Con Dios

2 comments:

  1. Hm. I'm not against cosmetic surgery. There are cases where it is a necessity. But I agree that the way it was marketed is unethical at best.

    Our sense of worth should not be entirely based on how we look.

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  2. Oooooooooooooo. I wouldn't try any cosmetic surgery because of the many fake-looks I've seen among the movie stars who went under the knife.
    Nobody can cheat time and death forever.

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