In the tenements of values, physical beauty holds no podium. | (Hedges 2020)
The lyrics to Oh, Pretty Woman by Roy Orbison may ring a bell to you. Or, the very title the song inspired, Pretty Woman (1990), directed by Garry Marshall, starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. In a world obsessed with money, physical fitness, good looks, masculinity, and femininity lies the global phenomenon of a pretty culture. Since time immemorial, we have worshipped beauty at the shrine in some way or another. We all worship beauty in some way.
Smeared in appeal and attraction, industries and corporations construct manipulated frames. At times presenting themselves larger than life, almost heroic. Hence, holding up an image of wealth and beauty is a well-known and adapted lingo. The lexicon of beauty is rich and lush in aesthetic, giving rise to vocabulary that addresses our culture of appearances.
Let alone the pressure of achievement, is the constant strain of fitting into the mould of a culture that would prefer you look a certain way (which is dependent on where you come from, your age, and other factors), do certain things, and say/ and not say certain things. In the holy grail of holding up an image, pretty culture willingly pervades us. We are hammered with slogans, models, and campaigns which all nudge us to buy this, and to buy that. Eat this, drink that, do this. However, with the existence of pretty privilege and an obsession for luxury, youth, and beauty, we are, and we know that we are not the appearances we are born with. This pretty culture has shifted, at least I believe this to be true, in the ways we react towards beauty in understanding that beauty is not a worthy value. We know and we realise that a culture that works is a future to look towards. A pretty culture, strutting and trudging, can only take us so far, while a growth culture looking upwards, one that is undefined by appearances, will take us forward.
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Hedges, Kristi. 2020. “How to Tell If a Prospective Employer Shares Your Values.” Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/10/how-to-tell-if-a-prospective-employer-shares-your-values.
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