Summary:
Teenagers becoming self-conscious is largely influenced by the various forms of media. With our society becoming more affluent and the advent of the information technology age, teenagers are definitely more exposed to widely held views of beauty and they have the financial ability to try to live up to that ideal.
Today's teenagers, unlike their parents' generation, are particularly concerned about their appearance, how they look and what they wear or the kind of make-up they apply. It is undeniable that we are growing more and more conscious of our self-image. We often find ourselves very conscious of how others may see us and whether we are socially acceptable by our cliques. Do the various forms of media contribute to this rising trend? In my opinion, our being conscious of our self-image is largely influenced by all sorts of media.
Nowadays, teenagers spend long hours in front of the television. Their viewing of the various programmes may have contributed to their self-consciousness. In movies and variety shows, we will undoubtedly find a host of beautiful or handsome actors, singers and comperes starring in them. When these teenagers watch these programmes, they yearn to be as attractive or charming as the screen actors or actresses they idolise. That is when they start becoming so conscious about the self-image they portray. There are some shows that would contribute greatly to the teenagers' self-consciousness. Take for example, the reality show 'Are you hot or not? in which young people are judged based on your looks. Think about it, if someone who looks just like you gets kick out of the competition, wouldn't your self-esteem be adversely affected? Thus, in a sense, such shows make teenagers more conscious of the kind of image they want to portray to others so that they will not be rejected.
When we take a long bus or train ride, many of us would not hesitate to take out our portable radio for some entertainment. The disc jockey may be doing a talk on beauty, like 'Are you beautiful enough"' or 'Is your skin healthy"' All these talks may make people feel very conscious about the way they look and create an urge for them to enhance their appearances.
Magazines are one of the forms of media that greatly influence teenagers today. On magazines, there may be some ranking like 'the top 20 most beautiful bodies' or 'the top 10 models' etc. In such articles, the author would usually include some pictures of the people that got into the ranking. These photos can be very demoralizing to some teenagers, causing them to be more worried about their looks than they already are.
Recently, the Straits Times have included a new section every Thursday called Urban. This section talks mainly about fashion and the latest trends in town. In this A4 size newspaper, there is an article called 'Hey, good-looking', where people send in pictures of themselves or friends whom they think are good-looking. When teenagers read this section, they are again reminded of the importance of good looks. Such constant reminders help to perpetuate teenagers self-consciousness and make them feel that they have to do something concrete to get somewhere near what is being pedaled as beautiful or good-looking by the media. This may explain why teenagers are never satisfied with their looks. In fact, in Korea and Japan, many teenagers actually opt for plastic surgery to look like your favourite celebrity idol.
Advertisements also have a great impact on teenagers' self-image because they are everywhere, on the train, in the bus, on taxis, at the bus stops, in shopping centres; the list goes on. When we flip through a newspaper, we find half or more than half the columns occupied by advertisements. It seems like advertisements have became part and parcel of newspapers. There are advertisements for slimming products or centres that highlight the difference between the beauty and the beast. The beauty is slim and slender while the beast is flabby and round. Such advertisements mislead teenagers into thinking that slim is beautiful and they become easily depressed about their figures when they do not match up to the widely publicized idea of beauty. There are also other advertisements for facial, skin, hair, toning treatments that generally make people more conscious about their looks. These advertisements affect teenagers more than any other age groups because they are at a stage where acceptance by peers is critical to their self-esteem. Thus, they will go to great lengths to impress others.
Today, the internet seems like an indispensable part of our everyday life. The internet is great source of information where you can find pictures of really beautiful personalities that can easily incur the jealousy of numerous people. This may result in teenagers becoming too conscious about their self-image.
In conclusion, I personally feel that teenagers becoming self-conscious is largely influenced by the various forms of media. With our society becoming more affluent and the advent of the information technology age, teenagers are definitely more exposed to widely held views of beauty and they have the financial ability to try to live up to that ideal. Thus, it is inevitable that they are very conscious of the self-image they portray.
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