SNL, the provider of so many laughs, for so many years: mocking society since '75.
Last night, there was a Saturday Night Live sketch about a few women wholeheartedly embracing an improved invention, the Nuva Bling! In it, these every-day women gush about a form of contraception that has an extra bit of pizzazz and glam to match their lifestyles. The piece ends with one of the girls candidly saying, "and, yeah, it does hurt," followed by an eruption of laughter by the group.
Viewing last night's segment from a sociological perspective gives us insight into the emphasis aesthetics have over what is reasonable. Certainly the piece is an exaggeration (sort of) and intended to be satirical, but it does raise a question of the painful lengths people will go to, to feel beautiful. Like many 'female' products out there, there's a certain level of discomfort to be expected. Sarah Jessica Parker recently commented on her years in heels on the set of Sex and The City and her life as a fashion icon of sorts, and how they have come to destroy her feet. According to Parker's podiatrist, her feet do things feet shouldn't be able to do and Parker's body has apparently MADE a bone in her foot. Personally, this brings forth a sense of unease and woe.
We've all been there, thinking to ourselves, "Why on earth did I wear something so uncomfortable?," bringing forth an interesting question that never seems to be answered. I think it's important to confront oneself with questions of aesthetics and really weigh in the value of physical wellness and beauty. Style choices are a personal thing, but it's always good to be mindful about what's going on our faces, backs and inside ourselves. My parting words are simply, be careful.
Have you ever knowingly worn anything that could be physically harmful, but, for the sake of being beautiful, did it anyway? Has anyone met their threshold of pain and lives accordingly?
This post was interesting! I found the Nuva Bling video to be funny but absolutely ridiculous. It was clearly a mockery of women displaying how they want make everything stylish or fashionable. Why would someone want to use their birth control as earrings and admit that it hurts but since its pretty its "fine". I must admit that I have worn shoes that I knew were going to hurt my feet but still wore them because they matched my outfit or they were nice. Its not a good enough explanation but it's the only explanation that I have. This post made me think twice about my actions.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post, I found myself not only thinking about painful style choices I've made but also about questionable life choices that women make regularly. I see multiple lawsuit commercials about IUD's and yet women continue to have them implanted. I wonder why women have taken it upon themselves to get these questionable implants. While I have made many painful style choices, I feel that women are making choices that can be severely detrimental to their health; implanting birth control methods, taking forms of birth control with dangerous side effects, having plastic surgery procedures that can go awry and more. Who's to say when enough is enough or what kind of harm or pain will we bear to be the person we think we should?
ReplyDeleteAs I watched the video I could not help but laugh and shake my head at the things being said in the video. Although this video was done as a joke it kind of gives us an insight of some of the stereo types applied to women. As women, we are often made to look in the media as overly feminine women that only care about being in style and wearing the latest outfits. Another interesting thing I noticed was that the ad mocked the fact the women are often willing to go to the extreme for beauty as also pointed out in the blog. I agree that there are many women who are willing to subjugate themselves to painful things in the name of beauty, I’m probably guilty of it too. However I think that it is important to look at the reasons why women do the things they do and why they place so much emphasis on exterior beauty. I think that we live in a society which often pressures women in to the idea that beauty is everything and can be a determinant to our success. We are constantly faced with the media telling us what beauty is and looks like, which is why so many women go to the extreme for beauty, because I mean who wants to be considered ugly?
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ReplyDeleteI love SNL for doing skits like this. I have TOTALLY given up on trying to wear high heels, because they are insanely painful and difficult for me to walk in. However, I almost just typed "Maybe I am just not good at wearing heels/meant to wear heels?" But is it really possible to be good at wearing heels, or do those women just have a high threshold for pain in their feet, or grow an extra bone in their foot like SJP? How is that even possible? We women do so much to try to impress the opposite sex, or even to just "feel good about ourselves" or look good for work, but men don't do nearly half as much.
ReplyDeleteI used to have pretty bad acne, for which I took medications for many years that negatively effected me. I was left with some pretty deep acne scars on my face, and I got several (expensive) chemical peels to reduce their appearance, which was painful. I did this to feel better about myself and to be more appealing to others. I don't consider a chemical peel as extreme as surgery, but it is certainly cosmetic. This experience also makes me spend loads of money on skin care and make up. I know I am not alone in all this, but it's crazy to think about how our society has gotten like this.
I actually saw this episode of SNL this past weekend, and when I saw this skit, I thought it was a little funny at the beginning, but then I got annoyed with it because I realized how gross the stuff actually was. I think it was an interesting way of showing the things people are willing to do just to look good or at least think they look good to others.
ReplyDeleteI also totally agree with you, Venusasaboy, in that we have all worn something that we later look back at and think "Never again!" Heels are a very good example. I normally wear heels only to special occasions and I know some heels are more comfortable than others, but you feel the pain the next day after wearing the "not so comfortable shoes, but they look good." For this reason that I rarely wear heels (even though I love shoes!), I look at girls who wear heels daily, or at least 5 days out of the week, and I just don't get how they can do it. I mostly have come to think that those women are used to heels, so they should not be in pain after a while, but after reading what you have posted about SJP, I guess they still can harm their feet.
I'm sure it'll be the most popular response: high heels. They hurt and I end up walking like Frankenstein in them. A friend insisted in wearing her super high Louboutin's well into her pregnancy, and during her shower finally kicked them off because they were too uncomfortable. Everyone likes to look their best, but it shouldn't come at the expense of your health and comfort. There's an idea that women don't wear crazy shoes and buy tons of makeup to impress men, but that they do it for other women. Maybe on some unconscious level we are trying to outdo each other? If not men, then what are we competing for?
ReplyDelete" There's an idea that women don't wear crazy shoes and buy tons of makeup to impress men, but that they do it for other women. Maybe on some unconscious level we are trying to outdo each other? If not men, then what are we competing for?" So interesting! Definitely a matter of introspection
ReplyDeleteInteresting comments, I'm not sure that women are the ones who really want to wear and reuse their birth control. Rather, I think the skit satirized the fact that companies would rather focus on what they think women are (shallow, superficial) than develop a safe birth control for women. Doesn't the skit also draw on ideas of covering up/hiding and otherwise erasing women's bodily functions-- everything that we do must be made beautiful-- we shouldn't sweat, we smell unclean, etc.
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