The Real Beauty of Dove?
October 19th, 2006 | Rebecca Jesson
I blogged about advertising to women some time ago. Today I took a look at Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty. There are a couple of videos on YouTube I’d like to talk about. The first basically shows a model being done up and photoshopped until the face that appears in the ad is virtually unrecognisable. Although it’s interesting to see how photographs are retouched for ads, this video is a little…well, flat.
Don’t we all already know that models and actresses are often made up and photoshopped to within an inch of their lives? So what? They are a hell of a lot more beautiful than the average woman to begin with. Surely that’s missing the point. The fact that women are judged on beauty in the first place is what needs to be considered.
Some time ago Steph directed me to an article in the Guardian, where the writer Ellie Levenson assures the readers that we need to realise “it’s OK to be ugly”. We must move “away from holding beauty up as an attribute to be valued above all others and moving towards accepting that beauty, ugliness, and everything in between is of equal worth”. She suggests placing more value on traits such as tolerance and kindness, which are “qualities that all can achieve and that are worth far more than a pretty face”.
Unfortunately, she misses the point. The very fact that beauty is not attainable by all is what makes it so valued and precious. Everyone likes looking at beautiful faces and there is nothing wrong with that at all. It’s like looking at a beautiful piece of art or a fantastic sunset.
However, the danger is when girls start to get the feeling that these beautiful freaks of nature are what we should all look like. The second video from the Dove campaign makes me sad. When girls as young as this are already having their self esteem whittled away by peers and advertising’s unattainable images, surely something is wrong.
Physical beauty is enchanting and alluring, but most of us don’t live in that rareifed world where your face is your fortune. What I would like to see is a world where people can accept that we all like looking at beautiful faces, that’s fine, we shouldn’t try to deny beauty’s allure. But we should also not forget that to most of us it just shouldn’t be as relevant as we are told.
Tags: advertising, media, women | Post Your Comments
October 19th, 2006 at 11:06 pm
You know, it’s funny how America’s pop culture is based on gorgeous, fabulous people. But it’s even more funny, (as well as fantastically ironic) that these barbie-like people make up like 5% of the entire population! Look at all of the buzz that has been generated by Dove’s campaign! Everybody is talking about it, blogging about it, watching it. It’s spreading like wildfire because it is finally some truth breaking through the clutter of today, the maddening messages that superficial, unattainable beauty equals love, success, and happiness.
There are many people who aren’t beautiful by the world’s standards, but are happy and rich is so many other ways, because of the people they truly are, the way they live their lives, and how they touch the lives of others. I’m so glad that Dove is responding to this societal plague.
Why has this Dove campaign received such a huge response? Because the 95% of us ‘ugly’ people have been justified in our normality.
October 20th, 2006 at 3:48 pm
As a member of the Dove team who made this film, your quote has just made our day.
“Why has this Dove campaign received such a huge response? Because the 95% of us ‘ugly’ people have been justified in our normality.”
October 25th, 2006 at 8:03 pm
That was a fantastic post and I can certainly relate to what you are saying. I used to be rather large - about 225 pounds. I decided to change my life, and managed to lose 50 pounds! It’s now several years later, and I am at it again. This time I do not have 50 pounds to lose… instead, I am on a six month quest for a six pack. I obsessively go to the gym and try really hard to eat well. Your words really made me think about why I do what I do. Why do I care so much about getting a six pack? Why do I StairMaster for 45 minutes every morning, and then go jogging, swimming, or weight-lifting in the evening? Why do I feel guilty every time I eat junk food?
Looking back to when I was big, I certainly remember being happier than I am now. I guess that’s just a side effect of the pursuit of perfection.
November 6th, 2006 at 12:24 am
Older I get, the more I wonder just who women dress up for. Men want them undressed.
When young, almost all, or maybe everything we do, is demanded by the genetic disposition to procreate. In that light the Fashion Industry has perfectly understood and tapped into something over which we have no control.
Dove has done the same thing as others in the industry, just focused on what is real.