Plastic Surgery Blog

Attractiveness opens doors

No, I don’t mean that figuratively, literally attractiveness opens doors. When an attractive woman approaches an entrance, doorways are cleared, elevators are held and chivalry is reborn. People will go out of their way to hold/open the door for an attractive person. However, the marginally attractive are left to fend for themselves in the world of manual doorways. One might say that such an advantage is negligible in the grand scheme of things, and the stereotypes attached to the attractive more than make up for this parity in personal encounters. To those I say, do not underestimate the Power of the Pretty.

The Pretty Prize of Presidency

Chicago, Illinois, September 26^th 1960 – The war of words that is the Presidential Electoral Debates are first televised. On one side was the man who was credited with positively changing the position of Vice President (according to Wikipedia), Richard Nixon. Let’s just say that Nixon was a man whose Pretty Power quotient could best be described by his middle name, Milhous. His rival was the enigmatic Senator from Boston, John F. Kennedy – a young and dashing man, notoriously appealing to the opposite sex. So powerful was his physical appeal that he frequently garnered the attention of iconic women such as the first Playboy Playmate, Ms. Marilyn Monroe (click for sultry proof).

The debates came at a crucial time in the election, providing a forum to sway the still undecided voters to either candidate’s side. Nixon had been recovering from an illness and looked groggy and unimpressive. The stubble and imperfections of his face were clearly visible on the television screen and it showed in the polls. John F. Kennedy, the more handsome and suave candidate, was viewed as the winner of the debates and subsequently became our country’s 35^th president.

Public perception, largely influenced by the Power of Pretty, had helped determine the most powerful position in the free world – a fact that would not be lost on Richard Nixon. In the Presidential race of 1968, a new Nixon would emerge, one who was “tanned, rested, and ready” (according to Wikipedia), a far cry from the Milhous of the 1960 race. With a little help from the Power of Pretty, Richard Nixon became our 36^th president.

Ask not what you can do to become Pretty, ask what Pretty can do to become you.

This marriage of Pretty, Power and Politics is alive and well today. From the much-publicized botox of Senator Kerry, to the recent worry free face of Australian President, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. It seems that in our society Pretty, however misguided, is a kind of window to a person’s inner character and strength. It just may be that automatic doors are the closest we as a society will come to equality of all people. So next time you see an attractive person walking your way, ignore, leave close the door and take the first step toward an America where all men and women are treated equally.

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Perfection’s Perception

No man is an island; everyone must occasionally seek shelter from the storm. This metaphor is easy to apply to oneself, the disconnect seems to occur when we apply it to the lives of others. The envy we feel toward others’ lives removes our ability to empathize with them. For instance, from a literal and a metaphorical view, the Porsche is the emptiest car on the highway. It literally leaves almost no room for anyone or anything else other than the driver. Yet it remains a bastion of perfection and a barometer by which we measure success.

The allure of the luxury automobile is it’s perception of mechanical perfection and how that perception is projected onto the driver. This projection creates a veritable loophole in the “actions speak louder than words” argument, allowing the driver to straddle the material and ethical fence between humility and arrogance. Do the purrs of the Porsches’ engines detract from the driver as much as champion his/her worth? If perfection were an achievable or even worthwhile goal, those perceived to be closer to that end would seem more at ease with themselves and fulfilled in their pursuits. But are perfection and happiness mutually exclusive?

Perfection in Princeton

To explore the relation of perfection and personal happiness, we look to the prestigious institution of Princeton and it’s students’ struggles with both. A student article in the Daily Princetonian explored the growing trend among students to seek plastic surgery. The article polled the students, and found that although students enrolled at Princeton are more likely to have plastic surgery, they are less likely to admit to it. These inverse relations suggest an interesting contradiction in the pursuit of perfection. That is, if the pursuit of perfection through materialism is the road to happiness, why be embarrassed or ashamed of the tools of that pursuit? The inverse relation of honesty and plastic surgery at Princeton is teaching us that perfection, as a tangible experience, is a shallow and empty lie.

A New Hope

However, admittedly perfection isn’t the goal of the majority of individuals seeking plastic surgery. Plastic surgery can be a positive, proactive change in a person’s life. Changing a particular perceived deficiency in your physical appearance can liberate you to remove other, less tangible, deficiencies as well. However, it can also become a self-destructive focal point. Remember that when dealing with something as altering as plastic surgery no matter how we look on the outside, we will always be who we are inside. The sooner we become content with that, the sooner we can begin helping others to that same end.

To reach this writer: Atbiviano@yahoo.com

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Stagnant Social Stigma

The social stigma of men and plastic surgery is reaching an impasse. The former roadblock of macho-ism is yielding to and melding with the causeways of functionality to form a new societal view on men and plastic surgery.

The unwritten “Stigma Statuette of Men” states that: any activity that serves no practical purpose but to improve one’s aesthetic beauty is taboo.

Change Is Possible

However there is a loophole in the statuette. When a practical purpose can be applied, the stigma is dropped. For example, Dirty Harry, a virtuoso vigilante of macho-ism incarnate, applied gangland justice while…. gasp, wearing make-up!!! This violation of the Stigma Statuette occurred when a set director noticed that makeup would reduce glare cast by the set lights on the actors. With a practical purpose for make-up in Hollywood the macho stigma of make-up and male actors was dropped and Dirty Harry was able to be bad-ass and beautiful.

A New World View

With this loophole (a practical appliance for an aesthetic procedure) in mind, a recent procedure referred to as “functional rhinoplasty” is marketing functionality as the major selling point to men. The logic being that the procedure not only shapes and contours your shnoz, but also clears the airways. What marketers and plastic surgeons alike are hoping is that this new found functionality will simultaneously clear not only their clients airways, but the social stigma of men and plastic surgery.

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