Beautiful or Smart.........
As I was waiting at the doctors with Carter last week I was flipping through a magazine on the counter of the cast room with my one free finger. It was one of those fashion/makes women feel fat magazines we all love to hate. They had a quiz of somesorts in there that I glanced at. I'm not sure what it was about as after seeing the first question I was to perplexed to care. The first question went something like this "How would you like others to think of you, as beautiful or as smart?" Ummmm we have to chose? We can't be both?
Then on Saturday I received my Glamour in the mail, as I said we love to hate them, and they had something similar in it. This time it was a trend watch or something, they said that Clark Kent like glasses are the "thing" now. They had a bunch of pictures of gorgeous celebs and the caption read something like "See how smart these beauties look?" LOOK??? So am I to assume your saying that you can't be beautiful and naturally smart, that you need glasses to make you appear as such?? This is all very disturbing to me.
After much thought on this subject, I suppose if I have to chose I'd chose to be smart. My cynical self thinks people would try less to take advantage of me, and less face it beauty fades and I'd like to have a mind to fall back on. Cause I know I wouldn't be able to afford all the plastic!!
I just don't understand why the media is suggesting that we can't be both. Can't we be both Beautiful AND Smart??
Then on Saturday I received my Glamour in the mail, as I said we love to hate them, and they had something similar in it. This time it was a trend watch or something, they said that Clark Kent like glasses are the "thing" now. They had a bunch of pictures of gorgeous celebs and the caption read something like "See how smart these beauties look?" LOOK??? So am I to assume your saying that you can't be beautiful and naturally smart, that you need glasses to make you appear as such?? This is all very disturbing to me.
After much thought on this subject, I suppose if I have to chose I'd chose to be smart. My cynical self thinks people would try less to take advantage of me, and less face it beauty fades and I'd like to have a mind to fall back on. Cause I know I wouldn't be able to afford all the plastic!!
I just don't understand why the media is suggesting that we can't be both. Can't we be both Beautiful AND Smart??
posted by Kate Michele at 5:40 PM
12 Comments:
Sure we can ... but you can't prove it by me ... but we can by you. (How's that for sucking up?)
Anyway, what's the point of those women's magazines asking questions like that? Seems kinda pointless to me. Beautiful on the inside counts, too. ... more even.
Here's next month's question: If you could take a pill that would make you smarter, but it would make your ass bigger, would you take it?
One of them will sell magazines, whereas the other won't. Whence the choice.
Anthony: Awwww man now that was worth some major brownie points!!
Answer to your next months question: I'd take the pill cause I could always excersise off the extra ass fat, OR since I'm now so much smarter I could creat a pill to take to get rid of the ass fat!!! LOL.....Now thats thinkin'!!
Raf: Very true....Sad isn't it?
I you ask a typical woman if she believes she is beautiful or if she believes is smart, I wonder what the answer would be? How many would say both? Not many is my guess. Magazines pander to both those who feel they are beautiful and not smart (even if they are) and those that believe they are smart and not beautiful (even if they are). I bet those women who feel secure in their beauty and smartness don't even really pay attention to those publications.
Note to self: A future discussion subject with my daughter.
I would say you and I definitely prove that a woman can be beautiful and smart at the same time!!
My answer to Anthony's question: No, I wouldn't take the pill. And I'd be offended if somebody asked. Because after a long time of feeling otherwise, I am finally happy with me, just the way I am. If I want to look better physically, I will watch my diet, exercise, and think long and hard about what's making me feel shitty about myself in the first place. If I want to be smarter, I will pick a topic I'm interested in and learn something. The standard of beauty going on in America right now is ridiculous.
Sorry to rant on your blog. It's just a topic I feel very strongly about.
So what is wrong with being average. Why beautiful or smart? Why not just average all around. I feel that I am the most plain average person I know and I am ok with that. I want to be beautiful and smart, as I think most people do, but I am average and I am finally starting to believe that there is nothing wrong with that.
I'm a sucker for an intelligent woman! I love a woman who can blow me away with her intellectual thinking. I like stimulating conversation other than, "Ah yeah, gotta get my manicure tomorrow and hair done..." type of talk...
Looks are great, but when she has a great mind---it makes it THAT much better.
Now with the lasik surger (which I got a few years ago) the smart look is totally gone for me.
Now I just look like a dork without glasses. *sigh*
Mike: I agree....as I get older those magazines seem more and more like fluff! (heres my geekness coming through) I've been diggin my Newsweek more! And yes a great topic to discuss with your duaghter!! Every ones heres brought up great points you could use!
Jes: I admire women who are at peace with themselves and all that they are. I aspire to get there some day...... I feel i'm getting closer. Rant all you like girl!! I love hearing what everyone thinks!! And this stuff gets my goat too, No wonder teenage girls are so confused!! Look what they're being fed!!
Brae: being happy with yourself and accepting your self shows that you're WAY above average!!
blither: I couldn't agree more! I love a good conversation and a sense of humor always gets me!!
deb: I think too a great mind and the ability to hold a conversation MAKES you even more beautiful!
Intelligence is part of what makes a woman beautiful - if that makes any sense, I don't know if I'm describing it well. Maybe better to say that an intelligent, funny woman is always more attractive to me than a so-called physically gorgeous woman with nothing but a moth buzzing between her ears. I like girls in glasses too, always have done.
Personally, I always find "real looking" women attractive. I am rarely attracted to actresses, singers, models etc because they just don't look real to me.
I hate that the media/magazines only give you an option of one or the other. It sucks for young girls growing up because I see that in my daughter now. She's 13 and she's a brain-has been a brain her whole life, yet this year in middle school for whatever reason-doing her hair and putting on make up seems to be more important than her grades. And it showed for the first time in her grade card.
It's sad that all those magazines also correlate being beautiful with being rich as well. I just read an article in the new 'Self', which for the most part is very accepting of everyone, that said those who dress nicer to go shopping get better service. THEN, the magazine suggested you should get gussied up to go shopping!!!
I enjoy being low-maintenance and if that bothers other people, that's their problem, not mine!
It also bothers me that when people ask what I do, and I tell them that they act all surprised. I am far from beautiful, but in this day and age why is it so hard to imagine that there are female scientists in the world?
I want both, but do they have to be the same woman? Can’t I have one that’s smart and one that’s beautiful?
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