Essay 3 Rough Draft

Can Beauty Be Honest?

Do you see yourself as beautiful? Most women do not. In 2004, Dove conducted a survey and only two percent of women claimed that they were beautiful. Thinking that you are beautiful is a way of being honest with yourself. Real beauty is not wearing the newest Sephora lipstick, or dying your hair every two weeks to keep up with the seasons. Beauty is being perfectly okay with the way that you naturally look. In the Ted talks videos, Cameron Russell is honest with us by saying that most of the models beauty is constructed. Aimee Mullins proudly shows us her different legs that are constructed to fit her body. According to my viewpoint on the videos, I can strongly say that beauty is honest.

First of all, models are constructed by their designers to appeal to be more beautiful, however they are still honest about it in the long run. In the video, Cameron Russel talks very much about honesty. She repeatedly says that she is being honest, and not just telling us the answers that we want to hear. Russel says, “"I am insecure." And I'm insecure because I have to think about what I look like every day.” When talking, Russel states that models are made to appear more beautiful than usual. They are photoshopped and positioned to become more appealing. However, Russel being honest about all of her modeling pictures and insecurities is what makes her beauty honest.

Additionally, Aimee Mullins was true to herself when it came to her prosthetic legs. She was not ashamed of what people thought of her, or of what she looked like. In her Ted talk, Mullins said, “I thought, "Well, that's amazing, because I don't feel disabled." And it really opened my eyes to this conversation that could be explored, about beauty. What does a beautiful woman have to look like? What is a sexy body? And interestingly, from an identity standpoint, what does it mean to have a disability?” This is saying that she finds her different legs beautiful, and that she does not try to hide them. She is honest to her viewers and to herself. That is what makes Aimee Mullins’ beauty honest.

Finally, Denis Dutton is the last speaker to speak about beauty. On Ted talks, Dutton has a strong viewpoint on beauty through nature. Dutton says, “Beauty is nature's way of acting at a distance, so to speak.” This exemplifies that nature cannot choose its own beauty. Nature makes their own beauty with what they are given. This plays a part in natural beauty. Natural beauty is the most honest way to view beauty.

To put it all together, beauty can be honest. Through the different Ted talks, we have seen different forms of beauty and whether or not they were honest. Cameron Russel, Aimee Mullins, and Denis Dutton all have firm viewpoints on beauty. Russel is honest with her insecurits, Mullins is honest with her prosthetic legs, and Dutton says that nature has honest beauty.

Works Cited

"The Natural Beauty of Women." How to Be a Natural Beauty. Dove, n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.

"My 12 Pairs of Legs." Aimee Mullins:. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.

"Looks Aren't Everything. Believe Me, I'm a Model." Cameron Russell:. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.

"Transcript of "A Darwinian Theory of Beauty"" Denis Dutton: A Darwinian Theory of Beauty. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.