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Beyonce's Influence On Women And Body Image

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Beyoncé is a well-known personality who has made a significant impact not only in the entertainment industry but also as a symbol of female blackness. Her music, dance, and style have captivated people worldwide, and she serves as an inspiration for young girls who aspire to follow her path. One of the key aspects of Beyoncé's influence is her unique approach to beauty norms. As a black woman, she has faced countless challenges in a world where Eurocentric beauty standards have long been the norm. However, rather than conforming to these standards, Beyoncé has embraced her unique beauty, celebrating her dark skin, full lips, and curvy figure as it shows in both the ''ELLE'' and ''VOGUE'' (in image number 2) magazine covers, and also in a variety …show more content…

Some have accused her of perpetuating harmful beauty ideals by presenting an idealized version of black femininity that is unattainable for most women. Others have argued that her focus on physical appearance detracts from more important issues facing the black community, such as systemic racism and economic inequality. In addition, one of the most prominent feminists in the world who is Bell Hooks has also criticized Beyonce and accused her of terrorism for her appearance on the ''TIME'' magazine cover. One of Hooks' main critiques of Beyoncé is her emphasis on physical beauty and sexualized performances. Hooks argues that Beyoncé's music and videos often objectify women's bodies and reinforce traditional gender roles. She points to songs like "Partition" and "Drunk in Love," which Hooks sees as promoting a hypersexualized version of femininity that is ultimately …show more content…

She serves as a powerful symbol of black excellence and a role model for black girls who have been discouraged from pursuing their dreams. Additionally, Beyoncé has been lauded by feminists for her work on issues like gender equality and racial justice, particularly with her 2016 album "Lemonade." Her commitment to social justice issues, such as police brutality and gender inequality, further demonstrates that her influence extends beyond her physical appearance. While her beauty may be part of her appeal, Beyoncé's impact is far greater than her looks

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Many adjectives have been thrown around when trying to describe a figure that’s been so influential, often imitated, and never successfully duplicated; monumental, a trail blazer, an original diva. Diana Ross epitomizes a successful black icon by evolving into a solo artist, actress, model, and style icon while coming from humble beginnings and prospering in the post-civil rights era. Not only did she tread untouched waters musically, but fashion wise she wore the best of designers like Bob Mackie and whatever she designs for hereself. It can be argued that she didn’t develop her signature looks until after she left The Supremes, due to lack of attention, ego clashes, and monetary restrictions. The key looks that make her so iconic are sensual, glitzy, and royal; unprecedented looks for a black woman at that time.

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Gay makes use of careful structure when she states, “I want to be strong and professional, but I resent how hard I have to work to be taken seriously” (Gay 373). Gay shows cause and effect of the world. From Gay’s perspective she receives the effect of never being taken seriously when she works hard. Gay mentioned Maxi Dresses and states, “For years I pretended I hated them, but I don’t (Gay 374). Gay exaggerates the word “years” because to convince the audience she is a “bad feminist” but still a feminist.

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Perry uses the metaphor of a crooked room to describe what these stereotypes do to black women. All these limit black women from finding themselves, and misrecognizes them not only to society but to themselves so much that black women feel shameful for not meeting their stunted expectations. This feeling of shame causes black women to more likely be “poor, to be unmarried, to parent children alone, to be overweight, to be physically ill, and to be undereducated and unemployed” (pg. 70). To combat the feeling of shame, Perry argues that black women will try to find their upright position and break away from those stereotypes, or distort themselves to fit better in their “crooked

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“Beauty is not just a white girl. It's so many different flavors and shades.” A quote most famously used by Queen Latifah. Julia Alaverze the author of ‘I want to be Miss.America’ faced the struggle of loving and appreciating her beauty when she moved to the United States with her family.

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Beyoncé's "Formation" music video is a powerful piece of media that showcases the intersectionality of race, gender, and class in America. The video opens with Beyoncé sitting atop a sinking New Orleans police car, and throughout the video, she addresses various social and political issues affecting Black women in America. One of the most striking examples of intersectionality in the video is Beyoncé's use of the "Black Lives Matter" movement, which directly addresses police brutality towards Black Americans, specifically the experiences of Black women who are disproportionately affected by police brutality. Beyoncé's video also addresses issues of gender and sexuality.

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Similarly, Beyoncé has had to persevere hardships as an African American within a highly competitive music industry in order to make it to the top of the

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She has spoken about her own struggles with body image and has used her platform to promote messages of self-acceptance and body positivity. Throughout her career, Beyoncé has been a powerful advocate for women's rights and has used her music to inspire and uplift women of all ages and backgrounds. On top of that, Beyonce's work has addressed social and political issues, particularly regarding the Black community. Her album "Lemonade" explores the pain and heartbreak caused by unfaithfulness, but also goes into bigger themes of Black excellence, cultural identity, and systematic racism. The album's accompanying visual album features powerful imagery of Black women and the struggles they face, such as police brutality and the censorship of Black culture.

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Despite her many global travels and initiatives, Gloria continues to receive criticism from individuals both within and outside of the feminist movement. Many admonish her because she has not yet commented on the Syrian Crisis or the Palestinian occupation. Thus, many regard her feminism as western-elitist feminism or white feminism. She addressed these concerns by stating, "There is no such thing as white feminism. If you call it white, it's not feminism.

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“… she was seventeen years old, fresh out of Cleveland High Senior High. She had long white legs and blue eyes and complexion like strawberry ice cream. Very friendly, too”(O’Brien 93). Her beauty is both inside and out which can even make the most loyal of men jealous. It can even be compared to Lucifer’s beauty in the bible, “…You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty”(New International Version, Ezekiel 28.12).

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In this essay, I will talk about how J. Cole goes about empowering women through exceptional lyrics, broad metaphors, and positive tone. Incorporated throughout the entire song are exceptional lyrics. The song is about flaws, a “Crooked smile” for example, and how those flaws do not limit any

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Although critics claim that Beyonce’s album portrays the black woman as the ‘victim,’ Lemonade instead empowers black women to freely express themselves and their ‘anger’ because there is no greater oppression than suffering in silence. Truly, Bell Hooks’ claim that “much of the album stays within a conventional stereotypical framework, where the black woman is always a victim,” is false and insensitive. As an artist, Beyonce crafts music that resonates with women, especially black women, who have suffered pain due to patriarchal ideals that infiltrate the household as well. The

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According to a survey done by Jesse Fox, Ph.D., 80% of women feel bad about themselves just by looking in the mirror (Dreisbach). This has happened because of social media being changed to make girls feel like they need to have a certain body shape. Models and celebrities in magazines and media show unrealistic beauty and it contributes to eating disorders, depression, anxiety, and much more (Seventeen magazine). Media has put lots of stress on women throughout history with changing body shapes. A survey done by Dove found results that 9 out of 10 women want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance.

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Recent statistics show that positive imagery of black women in the media appears two times less than negative imagery (Thomspon). The survey has illustrated that black women believe that representation of negative stereotypic characters in the media is prevailing, compared to the portrayal of pure Afro-American beauty. It questions the claim of our generation that it has entered the post-racial era, even though modern society proclaims itself to be alien to the racial and ethnic differentiation. Ethnical and racial minorities still come across deep-rooted prejudices, particularly at media platforms, such as movies, music videos and advertisement. Historically, negative stereotypes of black women were very popular in the course of the last century, and there were historical events that were justifying their presence, such as slavery era.

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Stereotypes of African American Women in Media The media is a powerful force of American pop culture that it affects what people see. It leaves an enduring impression in the minds of children, teens, and adults by setting the tone for the values, morals, and images seen on television. According to article, The Media as an Agent of Gender Development, 2017, gender-related images presented in the media might influence children’s views of boys, girls, men, and women by what they see (397). The media has negatively affected African Americans by forcing stereotypes that have been deeply rooted ever since the age of slavery, African Americans have been treated as second-class citizens and stereotyped as stupid, lazy, irresponsible, cowardly, submissive,

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Thus only selected issues are identified with in mass media. V. Profits in Feminism Yet there is always a fine line that artists tread between actual activism and self-serving opportunism. Feminism as a commodity Taylor Swift rides the wave of ‘feel-good’ feminism in order to brand herself and gain the attention of

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