In early April, Dove released a new worldwide campaign called #ChooseBeautiful. The campaign was implemented to convey how women perceive themselves, and more specifically, how they perceive beauty. The campaign traveled to 20 different countries, interviewing 6,400 women between the ages of 18 and 64.
The video was shot in five cities: Shanghai, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, London and Delhi, where women were given the option to walk through one of two doors. One door said “Beautiful,” and the other said, “Average.” If you have yet to see this video, you’ll be shocked at the results. I know I was.
96% of participants said they don’t see themselves as beautiful, however 80% believed every woman has something beautiful about her. The conclusion Dove came to is that women can see beauty in others, just not in themselves.
There are so many things wrong with this. First and foremost, the ideological perception of what beautiful is has been so wrong, for so long. Why is it that women see others as beautiful, but not themselves? Why do we live in a world where women constantly compare themselves to others? The reoccurring problem here is that women allow others to choose whether they are beautiful or not. Yes, is important to see beauty in others, but it is just as important to see beauty in yourself.
Women should choose to be beautiful not because of their appearance, but rather because of what comes from within. Beautiful should never be a label that limits your self-definition.
Beautiful is happy. Beautiful is clumsy. Beautiful is strong. Beautiful is scared. Beautiful is confident. Beautiful is indecisive. Beautiful is kind. Beautiful is stubborn. Beautiful is you.
What are your thoughts on this campaign? Is the video empowering? Or does it reinforce the ideological standards of what society perceives beautiful as?
Xo Paula
