The Eternal Search For Beauty

1270 Words6 Pages
Human beings have gone to great lengths to make themselves attractive to members of the opposite sex for thousands of years. Tribes in Africa have extended their ear lobes, or elongated their necks with a series of golden rings. Women in China used to bind their feet, crippling themselves in the process just to appear beautiful. Western women poured themselves into corsets, often causing damage to their internal organs, all for the sake of beauty. High heels are linked to back problems as well as foot problems. Yet the search for beauty and eternal youth continues, and today, modern technology has brought the medical profession into the issue. Fat can be sucked out of the body, body parts can be reduced or enlarged with surgery, and wrinkles can be erased. Where cosmetic surgery was once the near-exclusive purview of women, men are turning to surgical procedures in increasing numbers. There are, however, costs to these modification, and these costs extend well beyond the financial. Throughout history, women have been fed the notion that beauty is all that matters in life. Today, in the 21st century, women are the primary targets of the media industry. Cosmetic surgery was first intended as a repair to assist wounded and deformed soldiers. Soldiers returning from war with missing limbs and shrapnel torn faces entrusted their appearance to the hands of skilled surgeons of the time. The development of cosmetic surgery received a push for movement from the need to repair gross deformities sustained in WWI. Early surgeons intended cosmetic surgery for the repair of congenital or acquired deformities and the restoration of contour to improve the appearance. Today however, cosmetic surgery takes on a whole new meaning. Cosmetic surgery has become a mechanism women have turned to in hopes of changing not just their appearance, but also their life. Recently a friend

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