Beautiful - Christina Aguilera

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Displacement from a family, community or homeland can have a significant impact on how an individual sees themselves- their sense of self. Christina Aguilera’s 2002 lyrics, “Beautiful”, articulates the story of a young woman fighting against low self-esteem and insecurity issues. Linda Perry composed the song as she was fighting these issues and was struggling to find her own sense of self. Isolation and disparity in oneself is clearly communicated in Aguilera’s lyrics, which conclude in her discovering acceptance in herself and a sense of self-realisation that individuals can remain individuals. The opening line, “Don’t look at me”, sets a tone for the rest of the song, it demonstrates the persona’s insecurity to the audience immediately. It is clear that it is due to her physical appearance or another characteristic that she feels could result in her becoming an outcast, as it is visible to those around her. The first verse is an important part of the song as it informs the audience of the persona’s depression and marginality. Aguilera states, “Everyday is so wonderful, then suddenly, it’s hard to breathe”. This statement can be viewed as a metaphor for the alienation and the realization that she begins everyday feeling happy and as the day goes by she comes to the realization that life is not so carefree. “It’s hard to breathe” becomes a metaphor for the weight of sorrow she constantly carries around with her. “Now and then I get insecure from all the pain”, indicates her continual struggle with appearance or sexual preference. The last line of the first verse is powerful, “I’m so ashamed”, thus demonstrating that she feels this way because she desperately wants to fit in but she is unique and she is not accepted within the group. The first chorus quickly becomes a contradiction of the first part of the song, as she was describing her insecurities and

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