s e l f i e s :
ameasure
forbeauty
standards
Words: Celyn Cardoza
Admittedly, most if not all people now, know how to take a selfie. As the saying goes, ‘beauty is in the eyes
of the beholder’. But the real question is, how can one say the other is beautiful or not? Tall, white, and petite,
while short, dark – toned, and curvy – all these seem to be familiar stereotypes of the modern generation who
have been exposed to high standards of self –portrayal in the digital reality within Facebook and Instagram.
The selfie generation has gotten very good and competitive with each selfie’s angling and proper lighting.
Research by Now Sourcing and Frames Direct revealed that around 5% of the selfie generation thinks one
selfie is all it takes but the other majority will most likely take about an hour to attempt taking two to five more
shots before becoming truly satisfied.
This may not even be so much of a shock anymore in this generation, but really, what actually constitutes to
a beautiful selfie when a varying standard for beauty is the difference in culture?
The East vs The West
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In social media where selfies vary from one culture to another, the indicators are everywhere. In Eastern
culture like the Chinese, seldom will there be photos of contoured, lip – lined, orsharp arched eyebrows in
their selfies, compared to the ones taken by Westerns. Their selfie feed will most likely feature pale skin,
emphasised eyes, and rosebud lips. The comparisons for beauty standards go beyond just the selfie game as
more beauty trends become indicators of beauty standards from one culture to another.
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