The female expectations on the perfect image and perfect manner of presenting themselves has stemmed and been implanted into young girls’ minds for years. Society has taken every chance possible to tell young girls that they must act a certain way and look a certain way. In doing so, this has brought up girls pressuring themselves into molding themselves into what society wants. It starts as early as when the female mind can comprehend that we are different than males. We are told we couldn’t do certain things, had to dress a certain way, couldn’t play with certain toys because it wasn’t lady like. Since the minute we are born we are either categorized as female or male, with this decision our whole lives are mapped out a distinct way. Therefore, the stigma for what a girl is supposed to be only grows furthermore. Schooling has a big impact in telling us what we can and can’t do, for example the dress codes in school are far more conservative for girls than it is for boys simply because of gender. We are told by teachers at an early age to go play with the other girls in recess and that playing with boys isn’t necessarily appropriate. There comes a certain point in where we are no longer being told what to do but we become the people who judge and criticize ourselves.
As we grow older, we notice the drastic changes in how girls act towards others. They become catty and judgmental of others because they don’t look like the supermodels on magazines. This is a reaction of what they’ve been told to believe and look up to their whole lives. They take the environment they are in, which consists of continuous degrading and a one-way close-minded perspective on what a girl is and should be. This form of following the stigma in which society tells young girls is what creates a division in what girls come to think of themselves. It becomes a continuous cycle that engraves itself into young minds which becomes dangerous for young girls. It is not simply just female perspective but also males who judge girls for not looking a certain way. While giving direction into a healthy lifestyle is beneficial, there is a fine line between suggestion and brainwashing.
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